


Assassins' War

by AJsMasquerade



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Assassins, Enemies to Friends, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, I'm Bad At Tagging, Kinda, Light Angst, No Romance, Original Character(s), Panic Attacks, Redemption, Self-Indulgent, Social Anxiety, Trust Issues, Whump, anger issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-02
Updated: 2021-01-20
Packaged: 2021-02-24 16:35:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 93
Words: 149,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21641053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AJsMasquerade/pseuds/AJsMasquerade
Summary: Violet and her brother August are quickly becoming the strongest team of assassins in their guild, but what will happen when they are ordered to eliminate the prestigious Fairy Tail?
Comments: 3
Kudos: 3





	1. ONE

*Violet’s POV*

I was lying alone in my bunk when August came to get me.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“What do you think?” he asked, “it’s our turn for debrief.”

“Of course it is,” I stood, jamming my shaking hands into the pockets of my sweatshirt. I hoped the Master hadn’t found out about my last job or else...no I refused to think about it.

“It’ll be fine Violet,” August assured me, “There’s no reason to be afraid of him unless you’ve broken rules.”

“I know,” I hissed, “That’s why I am.”

“The only one who knows about that is me.” August said, “And do I look like I would tell anyone?”

“No,” I sighed.

“Well there you have it then.” He said, “Come on. Let’s go.”

August led the way out of the barracks and into the large chilly courtyard. This location was about as far to the north as you could get, so it was cold even in the dead of summer as it was now. The area was dotted with seemingly random storerooms and meeting houses and the whole thing was surrounded by a chain link fence. This was my least favorite location, to cold, but this was the only kind of life I had ever known, unless you counted the four barely memorable years before I joined the guild.

“Stop that.” August said.

“Stop what?” I asked.

“Looking all nervous like that,” he said, “If you keep that up the Master will be on to you.”

“Right.” I mumbled, returning my gaze to the ground. August would probably do all the talking anyway. He always did.

August had lived in the compound longer than me, in fact it was him who had brought me to this place all those years ago. He always said that it was no wonder that I had started thinking of him as my older brother, as though it had nothing to do with his personality. And although I had never disagreed with him out right, I knew that it could have been anyone who rescued me, but it was him, and that made a difference.

We neared the entrance to the Master’s office and quarters. August took a deep breath and taped on the door. I tried to calm down but the cold “come in,” sounded all too quickly and there was no time left to find my composer.

August opened the door and walked a few feet in before giving a respectful bow “Good morning sir.” he said. I followed his lead.

There was no way for the Master to know what I had done. This was just the same as every other monthly check in.

The Master didn’t return the greeting, he only looked over us, unblinking, then he shuffled through some papers on his desk. “You had a good run this past month I see.”

“Yes sir.” August nodded.

“Three completed missions,” he added, “Rather impressive for our youngest team.”

“Thank you sir.”

“How many kills was it again?”

“Four this month sir.” August stated proudly. I felt my stomach twist. It should have been five. We had a rule. No witnesses, and that little girl. She had escaped. but...I took a deep breath. It didn’t matter. She was probably too young to know what she saw anyway.

“And you, Violet,” the master said, “What is your total number of kills now?”

“Ninety nine sir.” I said.

“Ninety nine.” the master seemed to savor the words, and despite the churning my stomach, I felt my chest grow warm with pride.

“Almost to one hundred,” the Master said proudly, “You are growing stronger Violet.”

“Thank you sir.” I beamed.

“Well in that case,” the master continued, “I think I have another mission for you. Once I hand picked due to you being in Takashi’s program.”

“What is it?” August wondered.

“This one will be more of a challenge than anything you’ve done before.” the master said, “and the job is from a big client of ours, so there can be no mistakes.”

“What is it exactly?” August asked.

The master handed him a misson file. August flipped through it and his eyes widened. “S-sir?”

“Is there something wrong?”

“No,” August said, “It’s just are you sure we are ready for this, it’s a lot of kills not to mention…”

“Are you saying you don’t trust my judgment?” the master’s tone was even, but powerful and terrifying nonetheless. August and I didn’t like to talk about it, but we both terrified of the master, especially in moments like these.

“No sir.” August said.

“Good.” the Master sneered, “This job is a big honor. When you come back, there may be a promotion awaiting you.”

My heart lept, a promotion that was a big deal, and the respect that came with it... All of my fear of the master discovering my failure dispersed.

“Everything you need is in the file.” the master continued. “Ask your senior officer if you have any questions. Understood.”

“Yes sir.” 

“Alright then,” the master nodded, “hop to it.”

We left.

“So…” I said, once I was sure the door had closed behind us, “What is the target?”

“Don’t get too excited.” August said, “You choked last time remember?”

“Yeah…” I mumbled, “but I won’t this time. I'm stronger than that.”

August shrugged. but even though he wasn't showing it I knew he was excited for this misson too.

“How many kills?” I asked, longing to know the details.

“Five.” August said grimly.

“That’s not to bad,” I said. We had done jobs up to nine or ten targets a piece, so why was August acting so weird about this one.

“What are they?” I asked, “Politicians?” those were always hard, everything they did was publicized, so we had to be extra stealthy with those.

“No, worse.” August said.

“Worse?”

“wizards.” August said.

“Like from a guild?”

“yep.”

“A legal one?”

“Double yep,” August nodded.

“Wow, real life wizards” I asked dreamily.

“I think you’re missing the point.” August said, “We’ll have to kill them.”

“So?”

“They have magic too Violet,” August said, “They can fight back.”

“We can take them,” I said, “besides…we’ll get to meet other wizards.” I knew relating to targets was a bad idea, but I had never really met any wizards that weren’t members of my own assassins’ guild. Much less members of a legal one. This was going to be fun. 

We arrived at our empty barracks and August sunk to the floor, spreading the mission file out in front of him. I leaned over to read it.

“There’s our five targets.” I said. I was feeling a little more upbeat now, not only had the meeting with the master gone well, he had entrusted us with a challenging job, 

not to mention one that would involve meeting actual wizards. It was as thought the pit in my stomach had all but melted away. August and I. we had been chosen.

“And look! We're going undercover.” I said.

“I guess that’s why he chose us,” August nodded, “because we have magic to.”

I nodded. It was a skill that only a few members of our assassins guild possessed. Around the time I arrived there, a new senior officer named Takeshi had risen to power, being the Master’s own son it made sense why he could do whatever he pleased, so even though many long time members didn't like it, he started teaching some of us magic.

August and I were far from masters or our crafts, but we knew enough to get us out of a bad situation. With magic picked just to supplement our hand to hand combat skills. We were the perfect hybrids for the next generation of assassins.

And now we could finally use that magic to sneak into a guild of unsuspecting wizards. It was almost too good to be true.

I turned my attention to another page of the file and read the names out loud, “Natsu Dragneel, Gray Fullbuster, Gajeel Redfox, Laxus Dreyar, and Erza Scarlet.” I stared at the text, making sure there had been no mistake. “This is…”

“Fairy Tail.” August said grimly.

Even though I had only ever left the compound for jobs, I knew all about Fairy Tail, winners of the Grand Magic Games. They were notorious for their skill and teamwork. And we were supposed to kill five of them? My excitement died.

“August,” I said, “how are we going to do this?”

August looked down grimly. “I guess we’ll have to get creative.” He said, “We’ll be undercover, so we can just lure them away, pick them off one by one.”

“Right.” I nodded, regaining my confidence, “When does the job have to be done by?”

August looked at another paper, “it says we can have all the time we need.”

“Really?” that kind of allowance only ever went to the big shots.

“I guess we're moving up in the world,” August smirked.

“Yeah,” I smiled too.

“You mind packing some of my clothes?” August asked, grabbing a supplies list from the file, “I’m going to go grab everything else.”

“Already?” I asked.

“Why wait?” He asked, “Would you rather stay here and run drills?” August already knew the answer, so he left without waiting for a reply.

~~~

Third POV

A young boy lounged in an armchair in front of the master’s desk. “Do you really think those two pawns can handle a job like this?” He asked.

“Not at all, Takashi,” said the master with a sneer, “I expect them to fail miserably.”

“But then why did you send them, Father?”

“Because in war, it is the pawns that make the first move.”


	2. TWO

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> train ride to Magnolia

After August left I folded all of the clothes we had into two separate bags, then went over the file thinking of all the wonderful people I could meet on the job.

I started to get the pre-job jitters that I had grown to love over the years, and my hands shook remembering the power they felt when I took a life.

From the time I had arrived at the guild until now I had known two fundamental truths. One, Life was sickness. And two, I was one of the chosen few that was sent here to free people from it. I was an angel sent to release people from the misery they called life. And I loved it to. That’s why our guild was called Justice Valkyrie, because we were the ones meant to bring peace to a weeping world.

This was a big job, so I refused to fail. I wouldn't make the same mistake as last time. For this one there would be no witness, no matter what it took. No matter how young they where.

The door creaked open, and August wandered in holding a wad of cash and a bag full of food.

“Ready?” He asked, shoving his haul into the side pocket of his clothing bag.

“You know it,” I said, springing up from my bunk.

“Then let's go,” August scooped up the file in one hand and grabbed his bag in the other, I followed his lead, trialing behind him to the door.

Before leaving I glanced behind me at the bed that had almost always been mine. I felt a chill run down my spine, like this was the last time I would look into my room, but I thought nothing of it and turned to follow August into the courtyard.

~~~

The train station was more or less empty, which I guess was to be expected. There was almost nothing around except for the compound, and even that was an hour’s ride away by magic mobile.

August bought our tickets with money from the guild and we waited for the train to Magnolia. We had drawn up a plan on the ride here, and form now on I would be pretending to be someone else.

I had always liked undercover ops, they were interesting but it was always hard to get into it for me. Even by the compound's standards I was unbearably shy, and my 

life on the job had only made the matter worse, but perhaps the biggest reason I had a distrust of people was my Silvertongue magic.

I was an Empath; I had the power to read the emotions and intentions of the people around me. But there was more, I could manipulate them with my voice. I could make them feel what I wanted them to feel, with one little catch , I would receive the emotion they were having in return. I had to trade my targets feelings for mine.

Even thought I knew this was a helpful skill, I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about it. Something about knowing the feelings of everyone around me was just distracting, and in large groups of people it often made it hard to focus on anything else. There was a small part of me that wondered if my time at the Fairy Tail guild could help me come up with a way to get rid of it. But I knew there were bigger fish to fry.

Based on what I’d heard of Fairy Tail, it wasn’t pretty when people tried to hurt their members. Lucky for us we would be victims to, at least in their eyes. No one would suspect us as long as we were members of the guild ourselves.

From now until the end of the mission, I wasn’t an assassin. At least not in the eyes of the world. August and I had decided against aliases for this round, as neither one of us could come up with a name that we didn’t end up forgetting after a few minutes. So this time I was still Violet. But I wasn’t the same as usual. Instead of the highly trained killer I had grown to be proud of, I had to demote myself to a shy, innocent, mage, who’s only ambition in life was to join Fairy Tail.

August was silent as always. I sensed that he was deep in thought, but I could have known that even without my Silvertongue. The two of us where about as close as you could be in our guild. We didn’t need to talk to each other. We already knew what the other wanted. And we liked it that way.

The oncoming train rounded a bend, coming into our view. Butterflies spawned in my stomach. I noticed August's hand tighten on the handle of one of his katanas, the way they always did when he got nervous.

“Here we go.” he said.

“Yep,” I nodded, “You ready?”

“Always am.”

We boarded in silence, I took a window seat and started out as the train began moving. Just as it had for all my other jobs, the station slowly disappeared into nothing, plunging me into the unknown.

“Can I see the file?” I asked.

August looked around making sure there was no one sitting too close to us, then nodded, handing it over.

I flipped through the pages, memorizing the magics and attributes of all of our targets. “Erza has requip,” I whispered to August, “Just like you.”

“I know,” he said, “Maybe she could give me some tips.”

“That would be cool.” I said. I looked through the other’s but I knew none of them would have my magic. Silver Tongue was a long forgotten craft, not to mention illegal now. I would have to be careful how I presented it, if anyone found out I used dark magic, it could blow our cover.

“How long do you think we’ll stay there?” I asked August.

“As long as it takes,” He shrugged, “We have as much time as we need, so we have to get them to trust us before anything else.”

“Right.” I nodded. There was no way we could take them all at once, and when people started disappearing we had to be sure we wouldn't be suspects. I looked down at my arm, fiddling with the magic bracelet that was hiding my guild mark. I spent some time making sure I had every detail of the mission memorized, and then I closed the file.

The train’s hum was gentle and steady, and there were still many long hours before we arrived in Magnolia, so before I realized what I was doing, I found my head dropping into August's shoulder and I fell fast asleep.


	3. THREE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> we finally meet some cannon characters holy crap I'm bad at writing.

“Violet...Violet!”

My eyes fluttered open. August was shaking me awake.

“Are we there?” I asked.

“Just about,” August said, “Get your stuff.”

As August pulled away his hand brushed against my exposed neck. I flinched away from his touch. “Sorry,” he muttered, “I know you don’t like people reading you.”

“Whatever,” I said, “I read them all the time, i'm sure it’s just my magic’s sick since of karma.”

“If you say so.”

I was still a little drowsy but I gathered my things and stole a glance out the window. A large beautiful town was gliding past on both sides. “Wow,” I whispered.

Soon the train entered the station and the view was gone. I prepared to stand as soon as the train stopped. August pulled a map out of the file and showed it in his pocket before putting everything away. We had agreed to go straight to the guild hall first, and then find a place to stay afterwards. I was ready to see what all the talk was leading up to, I was ready to see Fairy Tail, but we had to find it first.

The train stopped and August and I exited quickly. We walked to a less crowded corner of the station and August pulled out his map, looking for our destination. Having nothing better to do, I scanned the crowd, unconsciously looking for threats. It was difficult to pinpoint individual's emotions in the crowd, but the overall atmosphere was relaxed and happy. That was, except for a few people, across the way there was a group making quite a bit of commotion.

“Natsu, get off the train,” called an annoyed blond. She reached in the train door, pulling at a pink haired boy by his white scarf. A blue cat few around them, cracking jokes and being generally unhelpful.

“August?” I asked.

“Busy,” he waved me off, staring intently at the map.

“I hate that thing,” muttered the pink boy, Natsu. “Happy remind me to never ride it again.”

“Aye,” Answered the strange blue cat.

I could sense that they were all Wizards, and then Natsu stood, revealing the red guild mark on his shoulder. That was all the proof I needed and more.

“August.” I repeated.

“What do you want?” he stared at his map angrily.

“Look,” I said, “behind me, the pink one.”

The frustration in August's eyes quickly turned to surprise, “Are those-?”

“I’m sure of it.”

“But now what?” he asked.

“Um…” I strained for some way to introduce ourselves. “Here!” I grabbed the map out of August's hand and tossed it in the trash.

“What are you doing?” He hisses.

“We are just a pair of dumb travelers that didn't bring a map.” I said, “and don’t they look like they would help us find the guild hall?”

August smiled, “smart thinking.”

August walked in the direction of Natsu and his friends, and I ran to keep up. Soon we were close enough to reach out and touch them, but they still hadn’t seen us yet.

“Excuse me?” August asked.

They turned around to face us.

“What’s wrong?” asked the blond.

“We aren't from around here and it seems we misplaced our map,” August explained.

“We could help you out.” the blond offered.

August smiled. “Really?” he asked.

“Sure,” said the girl, “My name’s Lucy, and this is Natsu and Happy.” she pointed to the corresponding comrade.

“August,” August said, “and this is my little sister Violet.”

I gave a little wave.

“Nice to meet you,” Lucy smiled. She seemed nice, but I doubted I would be spending a lot of time with her, she wasn’t on our list after all.

“Where are you guy’s trying to get to?” Natsu asked. He looked so...normal. But I knew from the file that there was an unstable power house hiding under his average facade. I tried to read his aura, but it was strange, he was helpful and friendly on the surface, but under all that, there was a deep power throbbing inside.

“We were wondering if you could point us in the direction or Fairy Tail.” August said casually, “if it’s not to much trouble.”

“You’re heading to Fairy tail?” Natsu asked.

“That’s the plan.” August said.

“Why?” Natsu wondered rudely.

My stomach dropped a little, but Natsu’s emotions hadn’t changed, he wasn’t suspicious of us in the least.

“Well,” August said, “Violet and I are wizards ourselves, and we’ve loved the place since we were kids, and we thought we’d try to get in.”

“You two are wizards?” Lucy said excitedly.

“Last I checked,” August smiled.

Natsu and Lucy shared a glance that I’m sure they assumed we wouldn't notice.

“We're wizards too,” Lucy announced.

I reminded myself to look surprised.

“Wait,” August said, “You’re name’s Natsu, but you’re not...the Natsu.”

“That’s me,” Natsu smirked proudly.

“Wow.”

August and Natsu rambled on about guilds and Magic and who knows what. I stared at the ground, too afraid to say anything. I knew that if I wanted them to like me I would have to make friends, but by the time I came up with something good to say I felt the conversation had already moved on without me. So I said nothing.

After a few minutes the others started walking, so I followed, trailing behind the rest of the group and keeping my eyes down. I kept tabs on the emotional state of all of them, August was cunning, I could feel that clear as day, and Lucy’s happiness was enough even to fill my empty heart. Happy was the same, and Natsu was mostly clam, not really leaning into any feeling in particular, but that was normal, so I didn’t bother to worry about it.

Magnolia was a fair bit hotter than the northern location, and I realized that my long pants might not have been the best choice, but I had dealt with worse, so I ignored the discomfort.

After some time I felt a presence next to me and began to feel uneasy. I dared to look over an found that it was Natsu, he must have fallen back to walk with me.

Natsu looked down, and for a horrible second we made eye contact before my gaze found the ground again. I could feel his steady concern so deeply I wasn’t sure what to do, but when I stopped looking at him the sensation faded, and I again longed for a different magic.

I slipped my hand into my pocket, making sure that Natsu and I would not bump hands. The last thing I needed right now was for my magic to work against me, for if we were to touch, Natsu would be able to see my emotions, and I knew he would not like what he found there.

“Your name’s Violet right?” he asked.

I nodded vigorously, still not looking up.

“Thought so,” he was silent for a moment, but then, “You’re a little shy huh?”

“Sorry,” I whispered.

I made the mistake of meeting his eyes again. His brow was furled, but not in an angry way, I felt a slight confusion in him.

“What are you apologizin’ for?” he asked.

“I don’t know…” my eyes dropped again.

“Well if you don’t know then there’s no need to say sorry.”

“Sorry.”

Too late I realized my mistake, but Natsu just chuckled. “Don’t worry,” he said, “Soon you'll be just as crazy as the rest of us.”


	4. FOUR

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> August and Vi join Fairy Tail.

“Here it is,” said Natsu proudly.

In front of us was a huge, beautiful building with the Fairy Tail emblem draped out front. The guild hall.No turning back now.

Natsu approached the huge oak doors and kicked one open casually, “Come on in,” He smiled.

“We're home!” Happy called, flying in.

He was greeted by the rest of the guild as Natsu and Lucy led us inside. The building itself was simple, but the people inside made it difficult to focus on anything in particular. There were so many different people. A constant hum of conversation filled the space, cut only by the seemingly random calls of deep laughter. My silver tongue told me everyone was more or less happy, and also that they loved it here. To everyone in this room, Fairy Tail was home. And we were about to destroy it.

“Look who we found!” Natsu announced, “These guys were lost trying to get here. They wanna join!”

The hum of conversation died, and I felt all of them looking at us like a meal. Then questions began to fly thought the air, to fast for me to hear them all.

“What’s their magic?”

“look kinda young don’t they?”

“lucky they ran into Natsu.”

We continued walking to what I assumed was the bar. Sitting on the counter was a short old man. He was smiling, and I knew from the file this was the master. I felt the other guild members attention turning away from us, but it didn’t make me feel any less uneasy, the old man’s eyes were unsettling.

“Gramps, This is August and Violet. They want to join!” Natsu explained, “What do you think?”

The master looked us over. “What’s your magic children?” he asked, his voice was just as kind as Natsu’s, but there was something else there to, a a wariness that I knew could easily become suspicion.

“I use requip,” August said, “And Violet's is called silver tongue.”

“Silver tongue eh?” the master repeated. I averted my eyes… did he know? “That’s a rare one huh?”

“Um...yeah.” I nodded.

“Hmmm,” he said.

I tried to stop my hands from shaking. I wished August could have just lied about my magic. If this old man had heard of it then we were toast.

“Alright then, welcome aboard.” the old man raised his glass and cheers erupted from all around us. I wasn’t sure if I should feel welcome, or more scared. The master had not made us do anything to prove our worth, heck he hasn't even asked our last names. How in the world did a guild like this win the Grand Magic Games?

August was pulled away by Natsu and some other buff looking guys, and I tried to follow, but Lucy unintentionally got between us. “Ready to get your guild mark?” she asked.

I glanced at August for help, but he was too far away to notice me. I sighed, I had to leave the nest sometime. “Sure,” I said, allowing myself to be pulled even farther away from my partner. 

Lucy brought me around the other side of the bar where a beautiful white haired woman was waiting. She introduced herself as Mirajane and explained how my guild mark wound prove I was a Fairy tail wizard. I thought that was rather ironic, since I was already concealing the mark that proved me an assassin, but I only smiled and nodded.

“Where would you like it?” Mira asked sweetly.

“Um…how about here?” I pointed to the inside of my left wrist, that way it would be easy to show anyone who came looking.

Mira pressed the stamp down on my skin and I felt a cold pressure before she removed it. I watched my new emblem pop into life. The light blue color blended in with my pale arm, but I could clearly see the outline of the guild I was sent here to destroy.

“It’s so pretty!” said Lucy excitedly.

“Yeah I guess so,” I agreed.

“Come on,” she pulled at my arm again, “Let’s go show it off.” She lead me to a group of girls, probably her friends. And I met Juvia, Levy and Erza.

“I'm glad you were able to join the guild,” Erza said politely. She seemed pretty normal to me, but I had learned long ago not to judge a book by it’s cover. And knowing what was in the file helped to.

They began talking about seemingly unimportant fluff, good restaurants, what happened on their last job. As usual, I felt as though I was only watch the conversation unfold, rather than being a part of it myself.

Across the room I saw August getting his guild mark, surrounded by people he had made instant friends with. I felt an unwanted pang of jealousy. August was likable in a way I could never be. I coveted his ability to win over whoever he chose, especially 

because he disliked people, when I on the other hand somewhat enjoyed their presence, at least, on the off chance that I wasn’t terrified of them. I wanted to be liked but... that was easier said than done, and to make matters worse, anything I said be a lie anyway. Even if I did somehow make these people like me, we wouldn't be friends. Not really.

I made sure no one would notice me leaving then slipped away from the girls to join August.

“What’s up Violet?” he asked.

“Just met Erza.” I said.

“Oh, cool.” he nodded, reading between the lines, “Natsu just introduced me to Gray, and over there,” he nodded to a man in the corner, “That’s Gajeel.”

“Awesome,” I nodded. I knew what he was doing. Unlike the worthless conversations around us, August and I were talking about something of importance, listing all the targets that we knew the location of. Thought I suppose we would have more time to talk without the guild members around, as we were in for the long game this time.

“Have you two found a place to live yet?” asked a voice behind me, I jumped then turned to find Erza had followed me away from the group.

“Not yet,” August said, not missing a beat, “like Natsu said, we only just got here.”

“Of course,” Erza nodded, “You guys can always check out Fairy hills.” she offered, “the rent isn’t to bad...but…”

“But what?” August asked.

“There is a separate boys and girls building, so maybe that wouldn't work out after all.”

For a terrifying second I thought August was going to say it was fine and condemn me to be completely alone, but then he shook his head, “I guess we’ll have to look somewhere else then,” he sighed.

I took in an involuntary breath of relief.

Lucy appeared behind me, I shyly stepped aside to allow her into our quickly growing conversation circle. “Now that I think about it,” Lucy said, “There’s a place down the street from my house that just became available.”

“Really?” August asked, “Do you know how much it is?”

“No sorry,” Lucy shook her head, “I can’t remember, but I can show you where it is.”

August glanced at me, the way he usually did when he was trying to tell me something, but whatever it was this time, I wasn’t getting it. I stared back. “Would you mind showing us right now?” August asked.

I thought that was a little much to ask of someone we had essentially just met, but Lucy simply smiled and nodded. “Just follow me,” she said, making her way towards the guild hall’s exit.

I watched her for awhile, frozen in place.

“Are you coming?” August asked.

I looked up at him and took a deep breath, “I think I'm going to stay.”

He realized an eyebrow, “Are you sure.”

Every part of me wanted to stay with August, but I nodded. I couldn't cling to him forever. This job would require us to split up eventually, and I needed the opportunity to gain the guild’s trust on my own, rather than just piggybacking off of August's hard work.

“Okay then,” August said, “I’ll be back as soon as I can, you should try and make some friends,” he nodded in the direction of the conversing guild members.

I knew he what was really saying, Go win their trust. So I nodded. “That’s the plan.”

“Good,” August smiled before following Lucy out the door. I watched him go silently, wondering what kind of horrible mistake I had just made.


	5. FIVE

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> BANTS WITH THE BOYS. idk.

After August left I took a seat at the bar. I’d said that I would try to make friends, but for the moment I was still trying to comprehend what made me decide to leave myself here in the belly of the beast.

“You and August seem pretty close.”

I looked up to find Mira Jane on the other side of the counter.

“Yeah, I guess you could say that.” I felt a little spasm in my chest. Someone had talked to me!

“Are you guys like…” Mira leaned in close, “Together?”

It took me a moment to register what she was saying, then I gagged. “Eww!” I squirmed, “he’s...my brother!” I was glad I remembered our cover story just in the nick of time, I could have blown the whole op right there!

Mira giggled, and I found myself joining in nervously.

“I was only kidding,” she said, “You two do give off a pretty strong sibling vibe.”

“We do?”

“Sure,” she smiled, “You remind me of my siblings, that’s them there, Elfman and Lisanna.”

“You guys all on your own to?” I asked before I realized it might be a touchy subject.

Mira nodded, and I heard movement around me, someone had taken a seat at the bar stool next to me, but I didn’t dare look.

“Guess you and August have been on your own awhile now huh?” a voice said.

I turned. it was Grey. A target. This was my chance. “Yeah,” I nodded, “Almost forever.”

“You don’t remember how long it was?” Happy asked, I found him and Natsu sitting on the other side of me. Two targets now. This just kept getting better and better.

“Happy,” Natsu scolded, “She may not want to talk about it.”

I paused, glanced at Natsu. He looked nonchalant, but his words didn't lie, and neither did his aura. His subtle kindness wasn’t something I was accustomed to, it intrigued me.

“No it’s fine,” I said, “It was a long time ago.”

“How long?” Happy impored.

“I’ve known him most my life so, maybe like ten years or so?” I shrugged, that was around the time August brought me to Justice Valkyrie.

“Only ten years?” Natsu asked, “Wait how old are you?”

I looked down, my age had always been a bit of a sore spot for me, easily with people back at my guild's compound mocking me for it.

“You’re not supposed to ask girls how old they are,” Grey told Natsu, “it’s rude.”

“You would know about rude wouldn't you ice princess?”

“You wanna start somethin’?”

I tensed, ready to leap out of the way in case the two went at it. I often witnessed squabbles like these back at the compound, they never ended well, with one or both parties beaten to a bloody pulp...or worse.

I started to get up to leave, but Natsu noticed my moment. “Woah, you good Vi?” he asked.

I released my expression probably wasn’t good, and settled back into my seat. I stole a glance at Grey he speeded perfectly normal, so did Natsu. “Y-you’re not gonna fight?” I asked. 

Grey looked confused, but then he laughed, “Well not with you stuck in between us at least.”

“Oh,” I looked at the ground. I didn't understand, only a moment ago the two were at each other's throats. What happened? 

“Sorry for asking you about your age,” Natsu said sheepishly, “I guess I wasn’t thinking ‘bout it,”

An apology? No one at the compound ever apologised. It was one of those worthless phrases, like “good morning” or “how are you?” I had always assumed they just ate up time. So then why did Natsu’s make me feel better?

“It’s fine,” I assured him, “I’m not quite old enough to care yet anyway.”

“So how old are you?” Happy asked.

Grey rolled his eyes.

“Fourteen...” I said quietly.

“Fourteen!”

I prepared for the teasing to begin, for them to tell me I was too young to be a serious wizard, or anything for that matter. But it didn't come.

“Well you could have had me fooled.” Grey chucked.

“Well how old did you think I was?” I was astounded when I realized my words were flowing out of me without effort. Guess I was getting the hang of all this friend making stuff.

“I thought for sure it was around seventeen,” said Natsu, scratching his head.

“Really? I was thinking twenties,” Grey remarked.

“Well at least I was closer than you,” Natsu muttered.

“What’d you say to me?”

The two thew insults back and forth like hacky sacks, but this time I wasn’t afraid. It seemed...right, and almost amusing. I allowed myself a little smile. Maybe this job wasn’t going to be so bad after all.

Erza happened to be walking past and noticed Natsu and Grey’s bickering. She gave them a glare and they immediately quit. I remembered that she was an S-class member, and wondered what she did to people who crossed her.

“Looks like you’re fitting in quite well, Violet.” Erza said.

“I hope so.” I nodded politely.

“Did you know she’s only fourteen?” Happy blurted. I shrank into my chair, avoiding eye contact.

Erza looked me over, then nodded, “Doesn't surprise me at all.” she said.

“Wait it doesn't?” Grey asked.

Erza ignored him, “It’s good to see someone as young as you taking such a serious interest in magic.” she told me, “I hope Fairy Tail can help support you in that.”

“Thanks…” I smiled to myself. Fairy Tail really was different than my real guild.

The guild hall was as loud and lively as ever, but I contented myself to just listening. I was keeping focused on the task at hand, so I kept close to either Natsu or Grey, they were the targets after all… I was vaguely aware of Erza’s movements, paying attention to who she did and didn’t talk to, but unlike Natsu and Grey she was constantly moving, like a tiger pacing it’s cage, always looking for pray.

I also stole a glance at Gajeel’s corner from time to time, but he didn’t seem to move, other people came to him. I knew neither I nor August had talked to him yet, but I haven't been introduced, and something told me he wouldn’t take being bothered, so I kept my distance. There was no sign of Laxus or any of his team for that matter, so I figured they must be on a job. Under normal circumstances that would cause problems, but since we would be here for awhile anyway it didn’t really matter when he showed up, as long as he did at some point.

It wasn’t long before August returned. He announced that it was late, so Lucy had sent her regards and gone home. He spoke to everyone briefly before stating that it was time we left too.

Once the guild doors closed behind us I felt a sudden sense relief. The street was more or less empty so I was pretty much alone with August. The way it was supposed to be. Even though we had been together most the day, it was like I hadn’t seen him years, that’s how it always was on jobs.

“So how’d it go?” he asked.

We were still in public and assassins weren’t exactly the best loved wizards, so we still had to watch it, but we could speak more freely without all of Fairy Tail breathing down our necks. “Good I think.”

“Good,” August nodded, “I was a little worried there at first, you where a little too shy...but it looks like you worked it out while I was gone.”

I smiled. This was high praise coming from him.

“How much was the apartment?” I asked.

“Ten thousand jewel,” August shrugged, “About what I expected, but you get your own room.”

“Really?” I had never had that before. I became excited to see our new place for myself.

“We only had enough in the budget for this months’ rent,” August contended, “So if we need to stay longer, we’ll have to take some Fairy jobs.”

“That can’t be too hard,” I shrugged.

“No,” He said, “and we’ll have to take some anyway to look like the real deal.”

“Right forgot about that.”

“I had to tell Lucy that the money for rent was our life savings, so if anyone asks we're broke now.”

“Right.” I nodded. I’d have to remember that.

We talked some more about the guild, how strange it was, what we had learned about the targets so far. As we neared our apartment, August pointed out Lucy’s house, in case we ever needed to visit.

Then we arrived at our new place. August seemed less than thrilled, but I was over the moon, I opened all the cabinets just to see all the fancy things inside. “Just look at it August,” I said, “and it’s all ours.”

Technically it’s the guild’s since it’s their money, but sure.”

“Spoil sport.” I stuck my tongue out.

“Well you have fun with your cabinets,” August yawned, “I’m going to bed. We have more work tomorrow.”

He disappeared behind a door, leaving me alone. I opened the one across from it to reveal another bedroom.

I slipped into my pajamas before climbing into bed. Today was a good start. We had a good handle on this job and all the time in the world to complete it. “We got this.” I whispered, pumping a fist in the air. As I brought it down the faint light caught my new guild mark, making it shimmer in the darkness. A pit grew in my stomach, but I ignored it and went to sleep.


	6. SIX

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> job time!

For the first time I was awakened by the sun streaming in through the window rather than the compound’s alarms. Waking up fast was nothing new to me, so I spent no time in bed before jumping up and getting dressed. I hadn’t bothered to unpack my bag the night before, so I did it now, placing my belongings in the wardrobe delicately, pretending to be a normal person, but I couldn't play forever. I heard movement outside my door and realized August must be up. I threw my light brown hair into a side braid before going out to meet him.

“Morning,” I said brightly.

“Hey.” He looked like he hadn’t slept at all.

“You okay?” I asked. I hadn’t expecting a real answer, and wasn’t surprised when he gave a shrug, blowing me off.

Turned to get some water from the kitchen and came back to find August looking somehow worse. “What?” I asked.

“You might want to change your shirt.” He said.

“Oh,” my hand intensively reached up to cover the back of my neck. “Can you see them?” I asked.

“Just a little,” he said, “but better safe than sorry.”

“Right.” I walked back into my room and shut the door. I looked at my back in the mirror, lines of white scars stemmed up from under my collar. “To bad,” I whispered, “I liked this shirt.”

Everyone in the compound had gotten a lashing at least once. That was just the way it worked. But I had received more than most. It wasn’t that I was a rebel or a rogue, in honest I loved the guild, but... I was just so forgetful. Late to training, for mixing up supplies, becoming too distracted to win practice battles. That was where my scars came from.

Part of me liked to forget that the whippings where a thing that happened. Most people at the compound did, so we all ignored each other's scars. they was just apart of life, the same way no one ever really talked about birthmarks. They didn’t matter, not really, they were just...there.

But at Fairy Tail things were different. People would notice something like that. So I changed my shirt silently and returned to the main room where August was waiting.

“Better?” I asked.

August motioned for me to turn around. I obeyed.

“Looks good.” He nodded, “Ready to leave?”

“To the guild hall?”

“Where else?”

I sighed. “Yeah, let’s go.”

August got up and followed me out the door, then locked it behind us. “I almost forgot,” he said, reaching into his pocket, “This one’s yours.”

He dropped a spare key into my hand.

“This way if you need to get out of the guild hall…” he didn’t finish, but I knew what he meant. “And I got this to.” He said and handed me a chain, “this way you won't lose it.”

“Thanks,” I nodded.

August looked surprised, usually I didn't bother with formalities. I guess Fairy Tail was getting to me.

We made our way out as I strung up the key and slipped it under my shirt. I liked the way the cold metal bumped against my chest as I walked, reminding me that I had somewhere to rerun to at the end of the day.

August and I were silent on the way to the guild hall. We both knew the plan by heart, and even if we didn’t, today was easy. Talk. Get a job. Blend in. Go home. Simple.

I entertained myself by watching the town of magnolia go by. There where more shops and restaurants than I had even seen. The whole place seemed...alive.

Before long the guild hall was in view and I could see the distant silhouettes of people coming in and out. It was like the heart of the city.

We arrived at the guildhall to find it was just as lively as it had been the day before. The master was no longer at the counter, which made me relax a little, but I knew he was probably around here somewhere. August led us toward the back of the building, but I had no idea where he was going.

Natsu got up from a table and joined us, followed by Happy. “Hey guys,” he greeted, “You two looking for a job?” He asked.

“Um yeah actually,” August said.

“Follow me,” Natsu offered, leading us to the bar. He brought us to Mira Jane and I waited for her to hand us our assignment, but she didn’t. Instead Mira explained how clients sent their requests to the guild and then they were posted so wizards could choose the ones they wanted.

“You mean you don’t just get assigned stuff?” I blurted.

Natsu gave me a funny look, “Well like, Maybe if this were a dark guild,” he laughed.

My stomach flopped. How could I have been to stupid. I didn't dare look at August. I could feel his irritation. “I guess we know less about guilds than we thought.” He said, covering for me as always.

“Well now you can learn.” Mira said sweetly.

“If you want,” Natsu offered, “You guys can come out with us today.”

“Are you sure that’s okay?” I asked.

“Sure,” he nodded, “Lucy’s out with Levy, so Happy and I’d be all on our own otherwise.”

“Well as long as it’s no trouble,” August said, “Do you have a job in mind?”

Natsu grinned creepily, “Yep.” He pulled out a job request worth a couple thousand jewel.

“Forest Vulcans?” August read skeptically.

“Natsu,” Mira scolded, “Are you planning on taking them monster fighting on their first job?”

“Um...no?” Natsu answered, taking a step back.

“Hey, it’s cool man,” August said, “Easy money right?”

“Yeah!” Natsu smiled, “You in Vi?”

“Um, yeah. I don’t see why not,” I shrugged.

Natsu smiled again, and happiness filled the room. I thought it was almost a shame that no one else could see the emotions dancing around us like colors in the wind.

We made our way out of the guild hall, I tried to look excited, this was supposed to be my first wizarding job after all. That was something someone would be excited for right?

I was secretly glad that the work mostly involved fighting, as August and I weren’t really trained in much else. I wondered if Natsu would be surprised to see how strong we were, then realized it was probably better to hold back, at least for now.

“The job is right here in town so we don’t have to go that much farther,” Natsu said.

“Wow ,not even a train?”

Natsu shivered, “Nope. I hate those things.”

“Realy?” August coked his head, “Why?”

“He gets motion sickness,” Happy explained.

“Right,” August nodded. I made sure to remember that detail, it could come in handy later.

August and Natsu rambled on about nothing. A skill I had learned was called small talk. I walked behind the others, keeping to myself as usual. I had already almost outed us once today. It was better if I just stayed quite.

It wasn’t long before the town of magnolia faded away and was replaced with scattered trees that got taller the longer we walked. I felt like the heavy forest air was trying to crush the life out of me. I wondered how long it would be before we invited Natsu on another job, one he would never return from.

Ahead of me, Natsu and August stopped talking, so I lengthened my pace to close the gap between us. “Are we here?” I asked.

“The job request says the Vulcans were last seen around here.” Natsu said.

“I guess we’ll have to start looking then,” August said.

We spread out, making sure to stay within shouting distance. I noticed Happy summon his wings and fly up to get a better view point. I knew if any of us where going to find our targets, it would probably be him, so I stopped bothering to look. I watched Natsu from a distance. I knew when we found the Vulcans we could get the chance to see his fighting technique, then we could start figuring out how to eliminate him.

Happy flew down, announcing that he had seen the Vulcans to the west of us. Out of the corner of my eye I saw August move in that direction. So I joined Natsu before going over myself. As we ran I noticed he was smiling. “Are you excited?” I asked, confused.

“Yeah,” Natsu smiled wider, “It’s been so long since I had a good fight.”

“Oh..right,” so he enjoyed fighting. I knew some other assassins like that, but they always kind of crept my out. Sure I loved the chase, and maybe even fighting sometimes, but I never enjoyed the kill. It was just something that had to be done. For the greater good. I was only delivering justice, or at least, that’s what they always told us.

It didn't take long for us to find the Vulcans. There four of them standing around a crudely fashioned fire. There was a spit of some kind of meat cooking there, but I didn’t know what kind. I didn't want to.

“There they are,” I whispered to Natsu, “What’s the plan?”

“The plan is to kick their butts!” Natsu yelled. I shrank into the bushes as the Vulcans turned to stare, great plan, I thought.

Natsu wasted no time before jumping into battle, flaming and screaming with no rhyme or reason. “Now there’s a sight you don’t see everyday,” A voice said.

I looked to my right in the brush to find that it was only August.

“We should probably do something before he takes them all out himself.” I said.

“Right,” August nodded, “See that one there? The one that’s farther from the others?”

I nodded.

“Let's go after that one, you distract it, I'll come in from behind.”

“Got it.”

I moved in the direction of the lone vulcan. I pulled my dagger of my belt just in case, but I didn't think I would need it. Vulcans where dumb and predictable, the perfect targets for my silver tongue.

I got close enough to be within earshot before breaking my cover from the brush. “Mr. Vulcan?” I called, he turned, and walked towards me, but not to attack, he was just Curious. “Kinda crazy over there huh?” I asked, nodding in Natsu’s direction. I pushed as much magic energy into my words as I could. Trust me. I willed, I'm your friend.

I noticed August stepping out of the bushes, ready for the kill. A strange memory hit me, we had done this same routine before, only a few weeks ago. By the target had not been a forest vulcan.

Stay focused, I told myself.

“It’s a nice day,” I told the vulcan, I pushed more magic energy, relax. But as was the case with all silver tongue spells, as I imposed one emotion on the vulcan, I got whatever the Vulcan was feeling most strongly before I went tampering with is emotions. He must have been afraid, because that’s what I began to feel.

August was almost to the Vulcan, he was so close to the kill. It was just like my last job. The one I had failed. But then, just like that it was it was over. August sunk his blade deep into the vulcan from behind and it burst into dust.

That was when the likeness to our last job ended. For the body then had not disappeared. It had been out in the open and seen. Seen by the daughter of the target. He had also given me fear, so when she screamed I just stood there. I stood there and let her go.

I failed.

“Vi?”

I failed to kill her.

“Violet.”

Why?”

“Violet!” August placed a hand on my shoulder. I jumped, but once I saw it was only him I sighed. August is safe, I told myself.

I turned to see that Natsu was watching us intently, the other vulcans also gone. I tried not to think about how nervous I was now. Usually after a battle I would have time to recuperate, to wait for my emotions to return to normal. But not today. Now I had to go back to a guild hall full of enemies and I was already terrified, a side effect from my cursed magic.

“What did you get?” August whispered, reaching for my hand.

I pulled away, but he touched me anyway then sighed. “Fear.” he said, “Great...worst possible scenario.”

I looked at the ground. We both knew I would have to deal with it. I still had to act normal around Fairy Tail. No way a legitimate guild would be cool with a forbidden magic.

“Can you hold it together?” August asked, keeping his eyes on Natsu’s rapidly approaching form.

“Don’t really have a choice.” I said through clenched teeth.

“That was a cool attack,” Natsu said, “You two work pretty good together huh?”

“Yeah,” August nodded, “I guess so.”

“How did you get that vulcan to just stop like that?” Natsu asked me.

“Um...it’s just a spell I know….” I said, looking at the floor, “It just makes the target feel safe, so they’ll let their guard down.”

“Cool.”

If Natsu was suspicious, he didn't show it. He wandered back toward the road, high fiving Happy for a job well done.

“Can you read him?” August asked.

“He’s happy.” I said, “and he feels loved...like he belongs to something.” 

“Guessing that’s the guild.”

“Yeah, that makes since,” I nodded.

“But it doesn’t help us,” even though he didn’t say it, I knew what August meant. That wasn’t a weakness, it wasn’t something that would help us take him out.

“I can’t see anything else,” I signed.

“You can try again later,” August said, “and keep an eye on the other targets to.”

I nodded, not having the heart to tell him that Fairy Tail’s emotions had been flooding my senses since the moment we walked in the door.

“Are you two gonna stand there and talk all day or are you gonna come back to the guild hall?” Natsu called.

“Coming,” August said, and we walked together into Magnolia.


	7. SEVEN

The walk back to fairy Tail seemed a lot longer than when we left. I could still feel the fear from the Vulcan coursing through my veins, and every little sound made me jump. I stayed behind Natsu and August, but my pace was irregular, and I couldn’t stop my hands from shaking. I prayed that no one would notice, and tried to act natural.

August must have noticed my jumpiness because when we arrived back at the guild hall he stopped just sort of the door.

“Something wrong?” Natsu asked.

August hesitated, my silver tongue told my he was looking for an excuse. “Would it be okay if we went back to our apartment first?” he asked, “That was a little more excitement than we’re used to.”

I noticed Natsu's eyes turn to me. He knew August wasn’t talking on his own behalf. My nerves jumped unnecessarily, but I couldn’t calm them down.

“Yeah, sure,” Natsu shrugged, “Will you be back later tonight then?”

“Yeah I’m sure we’ll be fine by then, right Vi?”

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.

“Well see you later then,” Natsu surged, walking into the guild hall.

“See you.”

August turned and walked in the direction of the apartment, not stopping to look at me.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

“It’s fine,” August sighed, “I should have remembered that it would take you awhile to emotionally recharge.”

“It’s not something that’s usually an issue.” I sighed.

“Well we might just have to get used to it, there will be times on this job where you’ll need a good alibi. You’ll have to be put together enough to fake it.”

“I know,” I said.

“I just wish...never mind.”

My silver tongue sensed he was holding back. “What is it?”

“Nothing.”

“You can’t lie to an empath, August,” I said, even thought I knew he was well aware.

“I know...It’s just...I wish you could have had a good magic.” August said, “something without all the baggage.”

I had never considered that idea. I wondered what it was like for August, who had a simple magic, one with no emotional damage involved. Or Natsu even, who could also use magic freely. For the others...there were no down sides, no cost. When they cast a 

spell, the only thing they had to give up was magic energy. It wasn’t the same for dark magic users, a little piece of us died every time. But until just then I had always considered that as my burden to bear. I had often wished that there were less side effects...but I had never considered that I could have ended up with a different magic altogether.

For all of the bad things that came with silver tongue. I didn't know if I would be able to live without it. How would I be able to tell what someone was feeling? What they thought of me? How could I make friends if I couldn't manipulate them?

Soon we arrived at the apartment, and I relaxed a little. There were no Fairies to lie to here.

I changed into some less dirty clothes, making sure no scars showed through my new shirt before I was satisfied. By the time I was done August had already gone to his own room and shut the door behind him, so I was left in the living room alone. Solitude was a precious thing for us, so I wasn’t angry at August for he shutting the door. It was a miracle we even had doors, it seemed almost wrong to leave them open.

I returned to my room and sat at the small desk, journal open in front of me. It was in this book that I made notes on the targets and the mission in general, for later study and to help with the inevitable debrief reports. I jotted down what I had learned about Fairy Tail and a few of my ideas for the continuation of the mission, but most of it just made me more anxious.

I knew that sooner or later we would have to return to the loud, emotionally crowded guildhall, and I wasn’t ready to face it again.

The guild hall wasn't necessarily a bad place, but I was still terrified of it. Not only did the location spell certain death if we were caught, but there was something else to. Some kind looming judgment, like the hall itself didn’t want us to be there. Like it knew we didn’t belong.

I procrastinated as long as I could while filling out my journal, and even thought I was still full of fear that was not entirely my own; I knew returning to the hall was inevitable, so I shut my book and went to go tell August I was ready.

I was about to knock on his door when I noticed a strange golden light coming out from under it. I also sensed the presence of a strange magic energy that I had never felt before. I knew it was coming from August, but that didn’t make any sense.

Through the door I read his emotions as a deep fear, a worry that wouldn’t go away, and also, a protectiveness that I knew was for me. But I didn't understand. Then all at once the energy faded and so did the light, right before August opened the door. “Oh, hey,” he said, “I was about to come get you.”

“Oh...”

“Are you ready to go back to the guild?”

“Yeah,” I nodded, “I think so.”

August raised an eyebrow, “Give me your hand,” he ordered.

I sighed, but agreed, offering him my wrist. He touched it gently, closing his eyes. I hated the fact that others could read me, through physical touch, even though I spent most of my time reading them. I knew that August had no malicious intentions in searching me, but that only made me feel guilty that I was lying to him.

“You’re not any better than before.” he said.

“I know but...I can’t hide forever. I know It’s not going to fix itself, so I’ll just have to deal with it.”

“You sure?”

“Yes.”

“Well if you need a break take one okay?” he said, “Better you spend an hour or so away from Fairy Tail than have a breakdown in front of them.”

“I know.”

And with that we left the apartment, and walked back to the Fairy Tail guild hall for the third time that day.

When we arrived back at the guild it wasn’t quite as full as it had been previously, probably because the majority of the members where out on jobs. Less people meant less emotions to worry about, but there was still a lot of feelings drifting around me.

August saw Natsu at the bar and we walked over to join him. “Back already?” Natsu said.

August nodded, “Just needed a little time to process.”

I felt eyes on me, but I couldn’t tell whether or not they where only paranoia.

Mirajane appeared on the other side of the bar. “Good to see you two back,” she said sweetly, “How was the job?” my silver tongue told me that she was just making conversation, but everything felt wrong, like there was a weight pulling at my chest.

“Good I think,” August nodded, “Thought it’s not like I have a lot to compare it to.”

“I told you it would be easy,” Natsu chimed in.

“Whatever you say, Natsu,” Mira said before disappearing Behind the counter.

“What are you gonna do now?” August asked.

“Happy and me were gonna get some food,” Natsu said, “What about you guys?”

“I think we’ll join you,” August said, “if that’s Alright.”

“Yeah sure.” Natsu nodded.

“That okay with you Vi?” August asked.

I didn’t answer, in fact I had hardly heard him.

“Violet?” August called again, and my attention flew to his face.

“Sorry…” I mumbled, noticing Natsu’s conserved look out of the corner of my eye. Not good.

“You okay?” August asked.

I took a deep breath, then nodded slowly, “Just low on magic energy...still.”

“Right,” August nodded, “How about this,” he lowered his voice, “I’ll order for you, go to the bathroom and figure it out, yeah?”

I nodded and walked off, leaving August to come up with some lie for Natsu and Happy.

Once I reached the bathroom I was relieved to find that it was empty, but I locked myself in a stall for good measure. I took long deep breaths, just like Takashi had taught me. In for five, out for eight. The swirling colors of emotion around my head seemed to slow, and I relaxed. 

I just had to get through the day, and then I could return to my cozy apartment with August, and I would be safe again. I rolled my shoulders and let out a sight, hoping that some of the stress from the vulcan would leave with it.

After a few minutes, I felt brave enough to face the guild again. I was their friend now, that meant they had no reason to suspect me. I left the bathroom feeling a lot better than when I entered, and when I returned to the main hall, I found August telling the story of our first job to a group of onlookers. He seemed pretty good at it.

I noticed that from his corner, Gajeel was paying attention to. This could be a good chance to introduce ourselves...assuming August had noticed. I slipped through the mob of immersed mages and sat next to August, who smiled when he saw me back in action.

August finished his overly detailed description of how we took out the Vulcans, and I heard a characteristic chuckle from the back of the room. I poked August, letting him know it was important, and he looked up to see the source of the laughter, Gajeel. August smiled, but I knew it was for a different reason than the Fairies around us thought, “I bet you’ve seen some good fights to,” August called, “You’re Gajeel right?”

“The one and only,” Gajeel remarked, officially joining the conversation.

The boys rambled on about who got knocked out the most, or who had been beaten the worst. August and I listened, making a mental checklist of everything Gajeel said, making it ready to use against him.

The night dragged on and the guildhall slowly emptied, until we were almost the only ones left. “I think it’s time we call it a night,” August said, “but we’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See ya then,” Gajeel waved.

We had almost made it out the door when I heard someone calling my name, I turned to find the guild master chasing after us. My heart dropped, “Violet!” he called, “May I have a word before you go?”

I hid my shaking hands inside my pockets, “Sure, I don’t see why not.”

“Good,” the master nodded, “Follow me to my office.”

I glanced at August and tried for a smile. I could feel his fear almost stronger than my own. “You don’t have to wait for me,” I said, “Go on home,” If I really was busted, I didn’t want August anywhere near the guildhall.

August nodded, “See you there.”

“See you there.” the simple phrase had turned into a desperate prayer as I followed the master of my enemies into his lair.


	8. EIGHT

“Sit,” the Master pointed to a chair on the opposite side of his cluttered desk. I sat slowly, jamming my shaking hands into my lap where I hoped he wouldn't see them. I watched as he took his seat on the other side of the desk. His face gave nothing away, and my panic had rendered my silver tongue practically useless. I was overloading.

“It’s Violet right?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“What’s your last name?” he wondered.

“Prince.”

“And that August fellow, he’s your brother?”

I nodded, preparing myself to leap out of the way at any moment should he choose to attack me.

“Interesting,” the old man nodded, “Are you related by blood?”

I hesitated, how should I play this?

The master noticed my silence, but misread it, “I suppose it doesn't matter.” he shrugged, “not to the people here anyway.”

I said nothing. His aura was still neutral. Either that or I was too afraid to use my magic properly, with under the circumstances was a huge possibility.

“Do you know why you are here.”

I felt a change in the atmosphere and tensed, waiting for it all to hit the fan. “No,” I lied.

The master nodded, “Didn't think so.”

I looked at the floor. I felt his eyes on me. He knew there was something wrong. I was messing this all up. I knew I needed to calm down, but today had been to much, and now I was going to ruin everything. And not just for me. For August to. I began shaking.

“Are you afraid of me?” The Master seemed surprised, but I was in no state to lie, I would have to come up with some other excuse. I knew that August and I had not wanted an elaborate backstory, but that might be the only way I could get out of this. Maybe I could pretend we’d had a bad run in with a guild in the past, thought him of our trial. Precious seconds passed and I realized the old man wasn’t going to move on until I answered, so I nodded slowly.

The Master made a sound of displeasure. I kept my eyes one the floor, hiding in my hair. “There’s no reason to be afraid my child,” the old man soothed, “You aren't in any kind of trouble.”

I looked up, “I’m not?” the words slipped out before I could stop them, and I clamped a hand over my mouth.

Makarov only chuckled. I couldn't believe it. He really didn't know a thing?

“You are here because I noticed something partially interesting about your magic.”

I stared at him blankly, still unable to comprehend my luck.

“You do use Silver tongue don’t you?”

I nodded, tried to play my part. He thought my odd behavior was due to my magic. I could work with that.

“So I assume you know what I’m about to say next.” he sad.

“You-you don’t want dark magics in you’re guild do you?” I said, already my brain was running scenarios, I would be kicked out but not discovered. August could still do the job. The only bad thing would be me...leaving Fairy Tail. I looked down at the guild mark on my arm. That wasn’t so bad...right?

The master followed my gaze and frowned. I got ready for the worst. “Under normal circumstances,” he stared, “I would not allow a dark magic user into the guild due to the...side effects. But in your case I’ll make an exception.”

“Why?” the question surprised me as much as it did him.

“I know the side effects of being an empath.” he sighed, “no one in their right mind would chose this magic willingly. And I don’t know how you got it, but I don’t think it was your fault.”

The master looked at me softly. I realized my mouth was open and shut it. He smiled, he knew he was right.

“I won't ask for details,” he said “but if you want to give them my door is always open, and I’m sure that goes for the rest of the guild members as well.”

“Thank you…”

The Master smiled. It was a real smile, the kind Natsu had. Then he waved his hand, as if he didn’t deserve my gratitude. He stood, and so did I, sensing the meeting was over. I made my way to the door when he spoke again. “And tell your brother I know about him to.”

“What?”

As soon as the master realized I didn’t know what he was talking about, his eyebrows shot up. There was a sense of fear, and embarrassment, I knew this emotion, he had given away a secret he thought I knew. Which meant August was hiding something.

I wanted to know what it was, but I didn’t want to stay in that office any longer then I had to. And also...I wanted to pretend I hadn’t heard that. If August was hiding something, I didn’t want to know.

“Well I’ll be seeing you,” I waved, letting Makarov know that I wasn’t interested in learning more.

He was still unnerved, but I could also since relief. “Stay safe Violet.”

I rushed through the emptying guild hall, eager to return to the safety of my apartment. I was almost to the door when Gray stepped in front of me. I could tell that he only wanted to talk, but I was traped all the same.

“What did Gramps want?” he asked casually.

“Gramps?”

“The master,” Grey explained, “What did he call you in for, I gotta bet with Natsu.”

“oh...I…” I weighed my options, this was the perfect opportunity for a tearful confection, which no doubt would be an easy way to gain trust, but Grey was the only target still in the guild hall, and I wasn’t quite ready to reveal my magic to the rest of them just yet. The element of surprise would be important once the fighting started.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t wanna,” Grey said, “I’m pretty sure Natsu would still lose anyway.”

“Why is that?”

“He thinks it’s because Gramps thought you were an Alien, and I win if it’s anything but that.”

“He made a bet off of that?”

“What can I say,” Grey shrugged, “he’s an idiot.”

“Sounds like it,” I laughed.

Grey laughed to, making me wonder why I was ever afraid of him.

“So where are you heading?” Grey asked.

“Just back home,” I said “It’s been a long day.”

“You got that right.”

I opened the door to the guild hall, outside was a lot darker than I’d expected.

Grey must have been thinking the same thing, “it’s pretty late,” he said, “you sure you’re okay going back by yourself?”

“Well…” I could handle myself, but this was a good opportunity to gain trust. “I don’t know.” I baited.

“I can walk you there if you want?”

“Yeah?”

“Sure it’s no trouble, it’s just over by Lucy’s place, right?”

I nodded. “Thank you.”

As we walked I told him about that morning’s job. He laughed when I described how crazy Natsu was. It was like we were real friends. I wondered if Grey really thought we were. but I knew the truth, it was all just manipulation.

When we arrived at the apartment I waved goodbye to Gray at the door. August still didn’t know that my call to the master’s office was a false alarm, and I wasn’t sure it was smart to have anyone from the guild to see the state he was in.

I walked up the stairs and into the cramped main hall of the building, slowly sliding the key off my necklace and into the lock. As soon as I opened the door August ran out of the room and pinned me to the ground, a dagger in hand.

When he saw it was me his eyes widened, I could feel his fear disappearing. “Safe?” He asked.

“Safe.” I nodded.

August let out a sign of relief and got off me, offering a hand to get me up. I accepted his over and he pulled me back into the apartment, shutting the door carefully behind us. Once it was locked August sank into one of the arm chairs. “So he doesn't know?”

“Not a thing,” I said

“Then why?”

“He found out about my silver tongue, about it being dark I mean.”

“Oh no,”

“No, I think it’s okay.”

“Yeah?”

“He said that if I ever wanted to talk about it, I could come to him. And I think he knows there’s a story there but he didn’t ask what it was.”

“Well,” August said, “that’s a relief. I thought we were dead for sure.”

“Me to.”

“Did he say anything else?”

I remembered the. Master’s last request, tell your brother I know about him to. “Nope that was it.”

I knew the moment I said it that lying was a mistake. I could sense that August was suspicious of me. We had known each other for to long. But he said nothing and nodded. He knew there was a reason I wasn’t telling him. He was letting me go.

“I’m going to bed.” He said, “you need anything?”

“No I’m fine.”

“Alright then,” he nodded, “I’ll see you in the morning then.”

“Goodnight.”


	9. NINE

I woke up to sunlight again. I rolled over in bed, savoring the feeling. August was banging around outside in the main area of the apartment, perhaps he was making breakfast.

I slipped out of bed and changed, making sure I was ready to leave at any moment, then I walked outside. As I had suspected, August was pouring milk into two bowls of cereal.

“Oh, hey,” he greeted, “I was just about to wake you.”

“Guess you didn’t have to I said,” sitting down at the small table, “Cereal huh?”

“Yeah,” August nodded, “thought we could eat here rather than the guild hall again.” I didn’t need my silver tongue to tell that there was more meaning behind his words. This was a kindness, he knew I hated it there. But there was something else in his aura to, like he was nervous.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

August sat down at the table, setting one of the bowls in front of me, “I guess I should know better than to hide things from you.” he said, taking a deep breath, “I have to ask you...what else did the Mater say to you last night?”

I looked down at my food. I didn’t want to have this conversation. And neither did August, but it had to be done.

After he told me he knew about my magic, and said it was okay,” I said, “I was walking out and he stopped me, he said, and tell your brother I know about him to. I don’t know what he meant, but when he realized I didn’t know what he was talking about, he became nervous. Then I came home.”

August sat back in his chair, nodding. “Okay…”

“Okay?” I repeated, “What was he talking about?”

“I know what he meant, that’s all that matters.” August said, “You don’t need to worry about it.”

It was his resolve that angered me most.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked.

“What I said,” August was getting agitated to, “don’t worry about it.”

“We’re partners.” I said, “if there’s something you have to worry about then it affects me to.”

“Not this time Vi, not yet.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I was genuinely hurt that he didn’t trust me with this, whatever this was. How long had his lying been going on?

“Calm down.” August said, he reached out to touch me, but I pulled away. I didn’t want him to read me right now.

“How long have you been lying to me?” I asked, reading his emotions, guilt washed over him, and he looked up at me. He knew I knew. “A while then.” I said, “wonderful.”

“Vi, Calm down,” August said again, “You’re still all out of whack from that Vulcan yesterday.”

“You think I’m that weak?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Well if I can't tell you were lying to me then-”

“It’s not like that.”

“-there’s obviously something wrong with me.”

“Vi…”

“Don’t call me that.” where was this anger coming from? I had always been able to keep a handle on things before...what was wrong with me?

“I need some air.” I said, “I’ll meet you at the guild hall.”

“Okay,” August sighed, “Don’t do anything stupid okay?”

“I won't.” I walked out of the apartment and shut the door behind me, making my way to the guild hall.

~~~

The walk was longer now that I was alone. But it gave me some time to blow of steam. August wouldn't keep something from me if he didn’t have a good reason. I knew that. But I was more concerned with my inability to detect his lie.We had spent our whole life together, I should have been able to tell if something was wrong with him...unless...he’d been lying from the very start, and I’d just gotten used to it...

I opened the door to the guildhall and stepped inside. With out August at my side I wasn’t sure what to do first. Did he find a target and sit with them, or had he gone it alone and waited for them to come to us? I couldn't remember.

I must have lingered a little bit too long because Natsu appeared before me.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

I blinked, then looked at the floor. His aura was dumbly confused as usual. “I’m fine.” I said.

“Where’s August?” Natsu walked father into the guild hall, so I followed him.

“Still at the apartment,” I said. I didn’t want to share why, so I said nothing.

Natsu’s eyes narrowed. My silver tongue told me he knew there was something I wasn’t telling him, but he said nothing about it and took a seat at one of the tables.

I stood awkwardly next to him, still undecided on whether or not I was going to join him.

I took a breath to speak, but it was released as a gasp when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I Tensed, but resisted the urge to pull away. I looked up to find Erza standing next to me. Lucky my sleeves were long enough to keep her from touching my bare flesh, keeping her from reading me. But I still shriveled beneath her touch.

“Violet,” she said, “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”

“You-you have?”

Erza smiled. “I wanted to have a talk.” she said, “I know it’s still early, but how would you feel if we went out to lunch together?”

“I-um…”

I glanced at Natsu.

“Don’t do it Vi,” he said, “Erza’s a monster, she wants to eat you too.”

Erza glared at him and he shrunk away, but I knew it was all in good fun. I was getting used to the friendly jabs of this guild. I reminded myself to be careful not to make any once I returned to Justice Valarie, since saying such a thing there could earn me a wiping... or worse. 

“Sure I’ll go,” I said. Erza was a target after all. Spending time with her was important. But I don't want August to think I was trying to ditch him. “Natsu?”

“Hum?”

“Um...could you tell August where I am if he comes here? I don’t want him to get worried.”

“Yeah sure,” Natsu surged.

“We can stop by to tell him if you want,” Erza offered.

“That’s okay,” I said. I didn’t want to see August so soon after storming off like that. We both needed some time to lick our wounds, “Let’s just go.”

“Alright then.” Erza nodded, “See you later Natsu.”

“Bye I guess.”

Erza turned and walked back out the main doors, I ran to catch up, but once I was there I had no trouble keeping up with her, even thought she was quite a bit taller than me.

I knew that Ezra was probably one of the most changing of our targets combat wise, but somehow I found I enjoyed her company. She was strong, but didn’t appear so. And she was calm, but there was something else. There was a kind of coldness in her. I knew she would not pity me, even if she knew what I was. I knew she would accept it, and then leave me behind.

I don’t know why that confronted me. Perhaps something about it was familiar, Natsu in the others where strange to me. They were too nice for my liking. I didn’t know 

how to react. Erza was all business, which made me wonder why she had wanted to met with me in the first place.

Erza led us to a cute café a few minutes walk from the guild hall. She got a table without waiting to be seated, but I saw one of the waitresses wave to her from the back, so I assumed she was a regular customer.

“This is one of my favourite places.” Erza said. It was the first time she had spoken since we left the guild hall, and though I had rather enjoyed the silence, now it was over. I took a deep breath. Time to pretend.

“I can see why you like it,” I said, “It’s nice.”

Erza nodded in agreement, and beckoned a waitress to the table.

“Good morning Miss Erza.” she bowed.

“Good morning,” Erza nodded.

“Will it be the usual again?”

“Yes.”

“Okay then,” the waters pulled out her notepad, “A cup of tea and a slice of strawberry cake. And for you?”

Both the waitress and Ezra were looking at me expectantly. “Um...the same I guess,” I said.

“Okay then,” the waitress wrote, “That will be right out.”

“Thank you.”

She hurried off to the kitchen.

“Same as me huh?” Erza asked.

“Well...I thought since you come here a lot, you probably know what’s best, right?”

Era nodded, “smart thinking.”

I sighed. Maybe this wasn’t going to be so bad after all.


	10. TEN

The Cafe was the perfect temperature, and it smelled like sugary treats. The people inside where mostly ladies or couples. It was bright and cheery, and I was terrified of messing up.

“Thanks for coming here,” Erza said, “I’ve been told that you’re rather shy.”

I looked at my lap, “word gets around that fast huh?” I asked.

“Well it’s not hard to tell either,” Erza said, “but I’m glad you seem to be warming up to the guild. It really is a great place to be.”

“Yeah,” I found myself fidgeting with the bracelet that was concealing my real guild mark, sliding it up and down my arm. that little piece to metal and lacrama was the only thing hiding my true identity. Even though I couldn't see the mark of Justice Valkyrie, I knew it was there, I could feel it against my upper arm, the mark that would brand me a traitor to the fairy tail guild, even though it had been a part of me many years before I ever set foot in the guild hall.

“As much as I love this place,” Erza continued, “I did ask you here for a reason.”

I looked up, afraid, but her emotions seemed pure. She was not suspicious of me. “What’s that?” I asked.

“I wanted to ask you what it was the master called you in for yesterday.”

My heart sunk. First Grey then her. Why did everyone think it was such a big deal?

“Oh…”

I waited for Erza to realize it was a sensitive topic, but she didn’t. She continued to stare at me. But she still wasn’t suspicious of me. She was sure of herself. Whatever it was she had on me, she had no doubt. And I knew that if she knew I was an assassin this would be a full blown battle by now. So what did she know?

“He um….he wanted to ask me about my magic.”

Erza sat back in her chair, triumphant, so that's what she’d figured out.

“That’s what I thought.” she said, “you’re a silver tongue.”

I looked down, “so he told you then?” I was somewhat upset that the master had betrayed my trust, but not at all surprised, now that the truth of my magic was out there, there was no way to get it back.

“The Master you mean?” Erza said, “no he said nothing of it.”

“Then...how did you know?”

“I figured it out for myself.” Erza said, “all it takes it a little digging to find a Dark magic. And the dragon slayers said you smelled strangely, so it wasn’t all that hard to piece together.”

“Oh…” hopefully all my lies weren’t this week, “So does everyone know then?”

“I'm sure not everyone,” Erza said, “and those of us who do will keep it to ourselves.”

“Then why are you telling me?” the words slipped out before I could stop them, but Erza only smiled.

“Because I don’t want you to feel alone,” she said, “I know that you’re magic can affect you greatly. And I don’t want you to feel like you can’t turn to us.”

I blinked. Where was this kindness coming from? I had originally liked Erza because I thought that she wouldn't pull something like this, because of her resolve. But I saw now that her cold exterior was only a greeting for strangers. And even thought I was not her friend, she didn’t know any better, so I had to pretend to be grateful for her concern.

Our food arrived, and we ate. I told Erza I thought it was good, but in truth I hardly tasted it. I didn’t like eating in front of other people. There was a kind of vulnerability about it that made me uncomfortable.

I was careful not to finish too fast and look like a pig. But not long enough, that Erza would have to wait on me. I hated having normal person problems. I wanted to go back to our old kind of jobs. Just me and August and a case file. But now there was a middle man.

Now there was Fairy Tail.

~~~

We finished eating and returned to the guild hall. I was anxious to return, not only because I was unsure how many of them knew the nature of my magic, but because I needed to apologize to August.

We were almost there when I found myself staring up at Erza.

She noticed. “Do you need something Violet?” she asked.

I was about to say no, but then something else came to me, and I let the words fall out before I could change my mind. “I don’t want to hide my magic anymore.”

Erza raised an eyebrow. She was just a surprised as I was. “You don’t?”

“I don’t want to hide anything.” I said, “not from my friends.” I was tired of dancing around this. Besides, this would lead to far less problems in the future, not to mention a false trust in me.

Or at least, that’s what the assassin part of my brain said my reasoning was. But what I really wanted was to stop lying, even about this little tiny thing. I wanted the rock in my stomach to go away, and I wanted Fairy Tail to trust me, even though I knew they shouldn't.

“It think it would be a great idea for you to share this,” Erza said.

“Yeah?”

She nodded.

“Well I was wondering...could you tell them for me? Or not, I was just, I…”

“I’d be happy to,” Erza said.

“Yeah?”

“Of course,” she nodded, “That’s what friends are for right?”

I felt happy that she’d called us friends, but I knew I didn’t deserve it. My guilt returned, worse than ever, would I ever escape it?

We reached the guild hall and walked inside, but I didn’t see August anywhere. Natsu was still at the table where we’d left him, eating as usual. I waked over.

“Oh, hey Vi,” he greeted, “so Erza didn’t eat you after all.”

I should have laughed at his joke, but I was too worried about August. Had he come here and Natsu forgot to tell him where I was? Had he gone out looking for me?

“Have you seen August?”

Natsu halted a rice ball halfway to his mouth. “Now that I think of it no.” he said, “was he coming here?”

I didn’t answer, where could he be?

“I’m going back to my apartment to look for him.”

I didn’t wait for a response before walking out to the guildhall and down the road. It felt wrong that I wasn’t running, I was so worried, but I knew better than to draw attention. Shouldn’t August have been at the guild hall by now?

After an agonizingly slow walk I got back to our apartment, only to find that the door was locked. I fumbled with the key, opened the door.

“August?”

No answer.

“August?”

I pushed through the door to his room without knocking. He wasn’t there. True panic began to rise in my chest. I balled my shaking hands into fists. Why? Why was I so afraid? Where was August?

“What do I do?” I whispered. I wanted to sink to the floor and never come back up. But I couldn't. I had to find him. But where could I go? I needed help. “I’ll have to ask them,” I I realized. I had to ask Fairy Tail for help. I looked around the room, racking my brain for some other way. But there was none. It was time to put their trust in my to the test.

I took a deep breath, then turned on the dime and sprinted to the Fairy Tail guild hall.


	11. ELEVEN

I sprinted all the way back to the guildhall, fighting with myself all the way there. I had to find August. But he would have to come back to the apartment by dark anyway, so I could wait to find him then. But what if he didn’t? What if someone recognized him? What if we were caught?

I needed help, that much was clear. But did I want it? No. obviously not. I didn’t want to go crying to my own targets that my partner was missing. But did I have another choice? I was on the verge of a breakdown. I needed August.

My chest heaved, why did it feel like a longer trip now that I was running? I blinked hard. Control. Control. That’s what Takeashi had taught me. But I needed August. I had nowhere to run to, nowhere but there. No one but them.

I had worked hard to gain Fairy Tail’s trust, and even thought this wasn’t the intention, now I was going to put it to the test.

I burst into the guildhall breathing heavily. I hadn’t wanted to make such a spectacle, but it was too late now.

Grey rushed forward, “What’s wrong?”

I felt the atmosphere of the room shift into concern, and I knew it was all my fault. I didn’t want it, but I needed them to care about me if I wanted to find August. Emotions where tricky that way.

Natsu stood up, “I thought you went back to your apartment to look for August.” he said.

“He’s not there,” I panted, “I didn’t know what to do.”

“Don’t worry,” Grey said, “he’ll turn up.” he put his arm around my back and guided me farther into the guild hall. “Try to calm down.”

I didn’t want to calm down, but I knew that if I wanted to find August, I would have to be thinking straight. I allowed Grey to lead me to Natsu’s table. Mira brought me a glass of water and I drank it greedily.

“when did you see him last?” Grey asked me.

“This morning.” I said, “before I came here.”

“And you haven’t seen him since?” Natsu asked.

I shook my head, “he was supposed to meet me here, but...we….we had a bit of an argument, so I….What if….” I felt my eyes getting wet. I didn't want to cry in front of them, but now that I was voicing my concerns, I could hardly fight it.

“Hey, We’ll find him okay?” Grey said.

I nodded, I wanted to believe him.

“He’s probably just off somewhere and didn’t pay attention to the time, but we’ll track him down.”

“How?”

Grey looked up at Natsu. Of course, he could find August by smell.

“What are you lookin’ at me for?” Natsu growled.

“Because you’re the only one that can find him, idiot,” Grey said.

“Oh right…”

“You’re hopeless,” Grey rolled his eyes.

“I’ll show you hopeless!” Natsu challenged.

“You can do whatever you like after we find August, keep your head in the game man.”

“Fine,” Natsu sighed and then stood still for awhile, sniffing. “This way,” he walked out of the guild hall, not waiting for us to follow.

Grey and I glanced at each other then hurried after him.

Natsu wasn’t going so fast that we had to run, but he was always few yards ahead of us. Grey didn’t seem all that keen on catching up to him, so I kept my pace. We walked for a few minutes silence, heading for the heart of Magnolia. I could feel Greys eyes on me from time to time, but I was too afraid to meet them.

After some time I felt Grey’s hand accidentally brush against mine. I stopped walking, and Grey jumped back in surprise, he had unintentionally read some of my emotions.

He looked at me.

“I'm sorry.” I said, jamming my hand back into my pocket.

“Was that...what you were feeling just now?” Grey asked.

I looked at the ground, I didn’t trust myself to answer. What had he seen? Fear of losing August, guilt from asking for help?

“It was wasn’t it?” He asked. 

Again I didn’t answer.

“You know...Erza told us...um about your magic.” Grey said, “that’s one of the side effects right? You can’t touch people without...letting them know how you’re feeling.”

I nodded. There was no reason to lie now. I had brought this on myself, but I hadn't known I would have to deal with the consequences at a time like this.

Grey sighed, “you know you could have just told us right off the bat,” he said, “why did you want to keep it hidden?”

I shrugged. Because I got it at my assassin guild.

“You know you can trust us.”

No answer. You can’t trust me.

“We don't want you hurt you.”

“I know.” but you should.

Grey smiled. He thought we were friends. “Come on,” he said, “We don’t want Natsu to get to far ahead right?”

“Right.”

Natsu was about to round a corner when he stopped abruptly. Had he found something?

Grey and I ran over to him,

“What is it?” I asked.

“Who's that guy?” Natsu asked.

I looked in his direction and saw August. I was ready to run to him and apologize for my outburst that morning, but I stopped myself. He wasn't alone. There was a man standing next to him, older than us, seventeen or eighteen. He had dark blue hair and cold stormy eyes. “It's Takashi.”


	12. TWELVE

“It's Takashi.” I sighed. 

“Who?” 

August turned and waved to me from down the road. I ran to them, not caring what Grey and Natsu did. I had found August, and now Takashi was here to. 

Takashi turned to see me just as I reached the two boys. He flashed me one of his rare smiles, and I returned the gesture. 

“Violet,” his voice was smooth and rich, like chocolate, “it's good to see you.” 

“You too,” I beamed. 

“August has been telling me all about your adventures,” he said, “I'm excited to hear your side of the story, but that will have to wait. Why don't you introduce me to your friends?” 

I turned to see that Grey and Natsu had joined us. I nodded to Takashi, we would talk later, for now I had to pretend. 

“Hey guys,” August greeted, “Takashi this is Natsu and this is Grey. They are some of our friends at Fairy Tail.” 

Natsu and Grey waved. 

“So this is where you’ve been all this time?” Natsu asked, “talking to this guy?” 

I could feel how offended Takashi was of being addressed in such a way, but I knew he was a good enough assassin to keep it together. 

“I’m just an old family friend,” Takashi said, “I knew how excited August and Violet where to join your...guild. So I thought I’d check in on them.” Takashi winked at me, and I smiled, knowing that we understood each other on a deeper level. 

“Well as long as August is save, it's good, right?” Grey said, “Maybe tell us where you're going next time thought.” 

“What do you mean?” August asked. 

“Vi had no idea where you where,” Natsu said. I could feel his annoyance. 

I felt August's eyes on me. I didn't meet them. 

“Sorry,” he said, “I had no idea,” he sounded truly apologetic, but I didn't want to go deeper into the topic. I didn't want to look weak in front of Takashi. 

“Well thanks for helping me find him,” I told Natsu and Grey.

“Yeah anytime,” Natsu nodded. 

“We’re probably going to head back to the guild hall now,” Grey said. 

I nodded, grateful that he understood it was time to go, “I'll probably see you tomorrow then,” I said. 

“See you then.” And then they were gone, walking down the street and around the corner, until I felt their presence leave altogether. 

Takashi turned back to us now that Natsu and Grey were out of the way. “I see you’ve become quite close with your...guild mates...”  
August nodded proudly, “They’re to trusting. That old fart of a master just let us right in, and then it was like we were all the best for friends.”

I wasn’t sure things had been quite that simple, but August’s explanation made it seem like everything was going according to plan, so I kept my mouth shut.   
“You seem quite willing to test that trust Violet,” Takashi said, “but those two looked eager to help,” 

I don’t want it to seem like I had actually needed Fairy Tail, so I nodded, “I had to make sure they thought we were true friends,” I said. 

Takashi laughed, “Well I’m sure it will be a nasty shock for them when they find out you aren’t.” 

August laughed to, so I joined in, not wanting to get left behind. 

“Well anyway,” Takashi continued, “What I wanted to tell you before those dirty Fairies showed up was that I am simply here to do a little check in. This is one of the first Justice Valkyrie jobs that is so dependent on magic, so naturally my father sent me here to check in on things, and perhaps give you some help if needed, but obviously you don’t need any. The master will be happy to hear about this.”  
“Thank you,” August nodded formally.  
“I've gotten a viable debrief from August already,” Takashi said, “but I have yet to hear your side of things Violet, mind if we check up?”  
“Off course sir,” I nodded.  
Takashi laughed “no need for sir here,” he said, “not now at least. Walk with me?”  
I looked at August, asking for permission.  
August nodded and I smiled at Takashi. He wanted to go for a walk. With me. Alone. I tried to keep things professional and hid my excitement.  
“Well I’m going to pop by the guildhall,” August announced, “I’ll see you back at the apartment.” 

I realized then that August had not mentioned our fight. I wondered if it was because he had forgotten about it, but decided it was more likely he just didn’t want to talk about anything negative in front of Takashi. 

“Okay,” I nodded, “See you then.” 

Takashi led me away, saying nothing. I sensed in him the same calm that he always had. I had missed him, and was glad that we could at least spend some time together before I had to return to the job. Takashi was my real friend. I didn’t have to lie to him, I didn’t have to worry. He was safe. 

Takashi turned into an old looking building, I noted that the sign out front said it was an inn. 

“This is where I'm staying,” Takashi explained briefly.

“Staying?” I repeated, “I thought you were just popping by for a check in.” 

“I am.” Takashi assured me, “but, I'm here on a job of my own.”

“Oh.”

“Although…” Takashi added thoughtfully, I did chose it because I knew you’d be in the area.” 

Without realizing it, Takashi had reminded us both of the gap in rank between us. He was a commanding officer, allowed to come and go as he pleased, aloud to pick his own jobs. I was so far below him, but I wondered, if after my targets in Fairy Tail where dead, I might have some chance of catching up. 

Takashi walked up some stairs and then to the end of the hall. The door he stopped at said, staff only. 

“This isn’t your room,” I said, stating the obvious

“No,” Takashi agreed, “This is better.” 

He pulled a lock pick out of his pocket and got to work on the door, without being told I turned to look down the hallway. “All clear,” I reported.

“Good,” Takashi said, “let me know if that changes.” 

I kept my eyes down the hall, ready to alert Takashi is anything happened, but he was a skilled assassin, and the door was opened quickly. 

Takashi slipped inside and I quickly followed, closing the door behind me. Behind the door was a cramped space with a ladder going up. 

“Lady’s first,” Takashi said. 

I smiled and grabbed the ladder. The rung I was holding on to was thinner than most, but I was light enough to not be worried. I pulled myself up, and pushed at the trapped door I found at the top. I crawled out to make room for Takashi before probably looking around. 

He had taken me to the roof. I could see a fair amount of the city, and the lights that were starting to flicker on all around me. The evening wind tugged on my hair like an old friend. Smells from a bakery far below flowed up, filling the air with sugar, a scent that was still strange to me. 

“Do you like it?” Takashi asked. 

I nodded vigorously. 

“I thought you would,” he smiled, “seemed too good to keep to myself, so I thought we could talk up here. If that’s okay with you of course.” 

“It would be wonderful.” 

Takashi flashed a grin and took a seat on the ground. “So then,” he said, “What have you been up to?”


	13. THIRTEEN

I told Takashi everything, from the moment I first arrived in Magnolia until when Natsu, Grey and I ran into him earlier that day. It felt less like a debrief and more like we were just talking. I always felt that way with Takashi. He was a great listener, and one of only two people in the world that I trusted. 

Once I was done telling my story, Takashi smiled, “Sounds like quite the adventure.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” I nodded. Until that moment I had not been treating this job different. than any others I’d been on. I understood of course that it was much harder than anything that August and I had attempted before, but I had been assuming it was the same concept. But not that I thought about it, I realized that the Fairy Tail job was very different from my other missions. There where more moving parts, and so many things that were new to me. I found Takashi’s word to be quite fitting. “Adventure.” 

“Have you decided which target you will eliminate first?” Takashi asked. 

It took me a moment to answer, as his question had shattered my previous thoughts, re-introducing a part of the job I had momentarily forgotten about. 

“No,” I shook my head slowly, “We haven’t quite gotten that far. Do you think it’s time to start picking them off?” 

“That’s up to you,” Takashi shrugged, “I was just wondering, since this next one will be your hundredth kill.” 

“I’d forgotten about that,” I said. 

“Well now you can choose between the five of them.” Takeshi said, “One hundred is a big milestone, you'll be more accomplished than most the guild then.” 

“Yeah.” 

I remembered when August had gotten his hundredth kill a year or so before. Takashi had thrown him a party, taking time off form training to celibate the accomplishment. Even the master was there. I had stood next to August as he congratulated him personally. I had been so proud just to be August's partner then, but to think that I would be hitting one hundred soon...I could hardly contain my excitement. 

After a moment Takashi spoke again. “I was wondering…”

I felt Takashi's mood shift then. He was...nervous? No bashful. Why? 

“I wanted to ask you something,” he said. 

“What?” 

I looked up at him to find he was looking out over the city.

“When you get back from this job...I got permission to have you promoted, and…” 

I leaned forward, waiting for him to stop beating around the bush. “And what?” 

Takashi finally met my eyes. “And I was wondering if you would like to become my partner.” 

My eyes widened, I could hardly believe what I was hearing. Takashi, the master’s son, the boy who had taught me magic, wanted me to be his partner? My heart was doing somersaults. He was...perfect. Could I really measure up? Is that what this job could get me? The chance to stand at his side? Like equals? 

“You don’t have to decide right away,” Takashi said, “You don’t even have to think about it until you get back to the compound. I just wanted to let you know now, that it’s an option.” 

“R-right…” I nodded hazily. 

“And hey, if you want,” Takashi said, “You can join my on the job I have tonight, just to get a feel for what it’s like to work together.” 

“You’re sure that’s okay?” I asked. I didn’t have the proper clearance, at least I didn’t think so. If he let me come he would be breaking the rules, and I could tell we both knew it. 

“I’d love to have you come,” Takashi said. 

I felt my heart soar. 

“I’ll do it.” I nodded. 

“Cool,” Takashi nodded, and I felt some of his nervousness wash away, “It won’t interfere with your main mission at all, we’ll be on the other side of town from the guild hall, and it’s a night job, simple smothering.”

“Sounds easy,” I said. 

Takashi shrugged, “Well it was assigned to just me, but no reason you can’t tag along right?” 

So he really didn’t have approval. He just wanted me to come that badly. 

“I have a long cloak and a mask in my room.” Takashi continued, “I’ll lend them to you, that way if you do run into any one from that other guild, you’ll be safe.” 

“Thanks.” I nodded, “That makes it a lot easier.” 

Takashi smiled. “I’ll go grab them for you, but you can stay up here as long as you like.”

“Okay.” 

I turned to watch the night sky as Takashi cambered down the ladder. I pinched myself on the arm. “Not a dream,” I whispered, smiling. I couldn't remember the last time I had been so happy. 

After a minute or so I stood up and climbed down the ladder. I didn’t want to make Takashi wait on me, especially after everything he’d already done. 

When I stepped through the door inside, Takashi was standing in the hallway with a black fabric draped over his arm. “Want to see the mask?” he asked. 

I nodded, and Takashi reached inside his bundle and pulled something out. The mask itself was white, and bold red lines swirled around, creating a beautiful scene. 

“I love it.” I said. 

“I knew you would,” Takashi smiled, “Now, I want to make sure the target is sleeping when we get there, so meet me out front at two in the morning?” 

“Okay,” I nodded. 

“Alright,” Takashi nodded, “I’ll see you then. Try and get some sleep.” 

“You too.” 

Takashi slipped back into his room and I made my way down the stairs and out into the empty street. I folded the cloak over my arm like a jacket, hiding the mask in my hand. Then I walked back toward the guild hall to get August. Even though I didn’t like to return there, I knew that in the long run I was only coming back to Takashi, and that knowledge could get me through anything.


	14. FOURTEEN

I stopped by the apartment to stash the mask and cloak, then made my way to the guild hall. The apartment wasn’t exactly on the way, but I enjoyed walking though Magnolia at night. I took the long way back, walking along the canal in the star light, breathing in the smells of the city. 

I opened the door to the guild hall as quietly as I could manage and slipped in. this was the latest I had ever been there, and it was more empty than usual, so it didn’t take long for me to realize that August wasn’t there. 

“Hey Vi,” Natsu called. 

I walked over to him. He was sitting with Lucy and happy, and Grey wasn’t far off.

“You looking for August?” Natsu asked. 

I nodded. 

“You just missed him,” Grey said, “told us he was going back to your apartment in case you came by.” I cursed myself for taking my time. I should have known he would be wanting to talk to me. 

“Thank you.” I nodded. There would be no wild goose chase this time, I just had to go straight home, and then he would be there. 

I was about to turn and leave when Lucy’s voice stopped me. “So,” she called, “how did your date go?” 

“Date?” I was truly confused. 

“Natsu and Grey told me about that boy you met up with, and August came here and said you ditched him.” 

Was really what August thought? 

“it’s not like that.” I said. But I could feel my face growing red. If one of them where to touch me, I wondered what feelings they would read. 

“Sure,” Lucy said though I knew she was still teasing me, “Could you at least tell me his name? These two idiots don’t remember it.” 

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Natsu and Grey’s heads whip up, but Lucy didn’t so much as blink. I suppressed a smile, answering the question. 

“His name is Takashi.” I said plainly. 

Lucy smiled, “Nice name,” she said, “and for the record, we know you like him. You’re red as a tomato.” 

I looked down at the ground, there was no point in hiding this. I was glad I was a better liar when it came to the mission. “Is it that obvious?” I asked. 

Lucy smiled, “Yeah, but don’t worry I'm sure he doesn't know. Boys are oblivious.” 

I wasn’t sure if that was supposed to comfort me, but I nodded anyway, “Thanks.” 

“And hey,” Lucy said, “if he breaks your heart, just get Natsu over here to beat him up for you.” 

Natsu perked up, “I’ll beat him up whenever, I don’t care why!” 

“Aye sir!” 

I giggled and then said my goodbyes, walking back to the apartment. I was ready to see August again. I wanted to apologize for our fight earlier that day. I still didn’t think it was fair that he was hiding stuff from me, but I shouldn't have called him out like that. Not when I knew it would hurt him. 

I was glad that Fairy tail had helped me find him, if Grey and Natsu hadn’t helped I never would have gotten anywhere. It’s like Takashi had said, this job was special, but not just because it was going to get me promoted, because there was time to meet people. People I would kill. 

I had been telling myself that I didn’t care about that part. After all, once all the targets were down, August and I would go back to the compound, and I would never see any of them again. Dead or alive, it didn’t matter since they would all be leaving me in the end or...I would be leaving them. 

I thought of all the nice things Fairy Tail had done for me, and I wondered what other nice things that they did for each other, things that I didn’t see. Even if I wasn't there to interact with them then...did that still matter? My training at my real guild told me no, that it didn’t really matter what happen if nothing came from it. But even so...part of me...part of me wanted to know what Fairy Tail was like before I came to it, how it would after I left. I wanted to know how these people went about their lives, even when I wasn’t a part of them. Why? Why did I care about that? 

I began to walk faster. My heart was beating faster than I would have liked. I couldn't read my own aura, but if I could, it would not have been light. Why did I care about Fairy Tail? The guild would go on with or without me in it, but what about the others? Would things go on the same without them? I had been assuming that nothing would change when August and I returned to our true guild, but we weren’t leaving alone. We would be taking five lives with us. 

I looked up to find that I was back at the apartment. August was waiting. I pushed my thoughts aside and walked inside. I could deal with them later. 

August was sitting on the sofa, he stood when I walked in, and I felt his mind snap to attention. 

“Hey,” I said awkwardly. 

“Hey,” he nodded, taking a tentative step toward me, “How did it go with Takashi?”

“Good.” I took a step towards him as well, attempting to communicate that I was no longer angry. “He has a job in town tonight, he wants me to shadow him.”

August nodded. “He said something about that earlier.” I was surprised to hear this. Was this really such a big deal to Takashi? That he had brought it up with August before even seeing me? I felt my heart flutter at the thought, but my elation was quickly quelled when I realized that Takashi might have mentioned other things to him as well. August has made no indication what he knew about Takashi’s plan to make me his partner, but I couldn't be sure. Still, I didn’t ask, it was a conversation for another day. I still had to apologize for this morning. 

“August-”

“Vi, I-”

“You go first,” August smiled. 

I sighed, “I’m sorry about this morning.” I said, “Things got out of hand and I…” I looked at the floor. I wasn’t used to apologizing for things. I wasn’t sure how to do it. 

“It’s okay,” August said, “I’m sorry too. I didn’t mean to disappear like that. I was on my way to the guild hall and Takashi just...well anyway, I’m glad Fairy Tail was there to help you.” 

My heart sank. They helped me so much, and they didn’t even know it. They didn't see it as anything out of the ordinary. They treated me like I deserved their help, even when I was destined to betray them. My heart felt like it was being pulled against a cheese grater, but I didn’t understand why. Why did Fairy Tail make me feel so much more than I wanted to?

My hand floated up to my chest and attached itself there, as if gripping my shirt could stop the burning in my chest. The movement did not go unnoticed. 

“What’s wrong?” August asked. 

“Fairy tail…” the words where harder to get out than I’d anticipated. My voice was only a whisper, “They…” The words died in my throat again, blocked by the lump that was forming there. 

August moved from his place by the sofa and gently pulled my hand away from me, placing it in his. I knew he could read me, but I didn’t pull away. His touch was warm, and even though any touch was vulnerable, I knew his was safe. 

August's touch was reassuring, but somehow it made me feel worse. Tears began to fall from my face. I watched them drop down and melt into my hair. I didn’t look at August. I knew I was being weak. 

Life was a disease. I knew that. I was chosen to stop it. To free people from suffering. I would have the honor of releasing Fairy Tail from the pain of living. But from what I had seen, my targets were not suffering. They were not in pain, so when I killed them, what would I be fixing? Who would I be saving? 

“August,” I whispered, “How are we going to kill these people? How can we?” 

August pulled me closer, “I don’t know.” he said, “but we have to.” 

I jerked away from him. “Why?!” I yelled. 

“Vi…”

“Why do we have to do it?” I asked. “We could...we could…” I reached my mind for some solution, “We can run away!” I said, “We’ll run and the Master will never find us and then-”

August placed his hand over my mouth gently. “No,” he said, “We can’t.” he pulled away, and I felt cold without him near. 

“I’ve been meaning to tell you this for awhile,” he said, “Especially after this morning, but I guess I was just too scared to.” 

“What is it?” 

“It’s probably best to show you.” August stepped further back. He reached his hands out in front of him, a strange position that I had never seen before, but August seemed to know what he was doing. A golden light filled the small room, and a kind of keyboard appeared under August's fingers. 

“What is that?” I asked, not entirely sure I wanted the answer.

August’s eyes sparkled in the light of this new magic. “It’s called Archive magic.” he said, “it's lets me see all kinds of data and other cool stuff.” 

“But…” I trailed off. This didn’t make sense, “You learned requip.” I said, “Takashi taught you…”

“Takashi doesn't know anything about this.” August said, “No one does. I taught myself.” 

“But...why?” Why would August need more than one magic? Wasn’t requip enough? And from what I could see this new Archive magic had no combat benefits. I saw no way it would help him as an assassin. 

He was silent, but he dropped his arms, disappearing the golden keyboard into specks of light that quickly faded as they dropped to the floor. 

“Please explain.” I said. 

August took a long breath and threw himself down on the sofa, settling in for a long conversation. I stayed where I was, to wrapped up in getting answers to even notice that I was still standing only a few steps in from the door. 

“On one of my first jobs, back before I even found you,” August started, “I found a book in one of my target’s houses, it was all about this magic. I thought it was cool, so I stole it. I read thought it a couple times, but it was all magic gibberish to me back then, so I didn’t think much of it. But a few years after I found you, Takashi started teaching us magic, and the book started to make sense to me. When people were watching, I learned the magic that was assigned to me, requip. But when they weren’t…” he pulled his eyes to the floor. 

“But...why didn’t you tell anyone?” I asked. 

“Because once I got pretty good at Archive, I started seeing things on it that I knew the master wouldn't like, news reports and other information on dark gilds. I knew I had to keep it to myself.”

“I was going to tell you, but then I used it to hack Justice Valkyrie's security lacrama. I learned about some policies that the guild doesn't like to talk about. And I knew that if I got caught with the magic...it wouldn't be good, so I said nothing.” 

“Which policies?” I asked. What could be so bad that it made August afraid? 

“Like what they do to members that don’t complete their missions.” August said, “like what they’ll do to us if we don’t kill Fairy Tail.” 

“What?” even as I said it, I knew I didn’t want the answer. But I had to know. 

“Violet, if we fail, the master will send in more agents, but they won't just be taking out our targets, they’ll be sent after us too.” 

“That’s not true.” The answer was automatic. It slipped through my lips before I had truly processed what he was saying. 

“If we fail, they will send other assassins to take us out.” August said, making sure I got the message. 

“That’s not true.” The words came slower this time, a plea rather than a reaction. 

“You know it is, Vi,” August said, “You can sense lies, you know I’m not.” 

“I want you to be.” I felt my tears returning. This was all too much, “I don’t want to kill them.” 

“I know.” August said, “but they were dead the moment the master got the request. Either we kill them, or we let someone else do it, and take us to, along with everyone who ever knew about it. If any of them find out about us, target or not...they’re dead.” 

I hesitated, taking it all in. where those really the rules? My magic told me that August’s words where true, not that I needed it to trust him, but even so...I couldn't believe it. I had never heard of this happening before. But then again I had never heard of anyone failing before. But there were times when guild members wouldn't come back from assignments. Had this been their fate? To die at the hands of their own? 

And it would be the same for the Fairies, killed by others who bore the same guild mark, regardless of the lies under which it was obtained. Where they destined to die? 

“I don’t want to.” I repeated. 

“It’s them or us,” August said sadly, “it's them or us and them, not to mention anyone who gets in the way. The less dying the better right?” 

I looked up at August to find that his eyes where no longer on the floor but my face. I dropped my gaze quickly, but I didn’t need to be looking at him to know he wasn’t lying. 

Nothing had changed. Not really. I would kill the Fairies as planned, then August and I would return to Justice Valkyrie. It was the same as it had been yesterday. The same as any other job. So why did it feel like my soul was being ripped in two? 

I slowed, trying to be brave. “I guess we have to do it then?” 

August nodded, “I don’t like it any more than you do.” 

I took a long breath and wiped my nose on my sleeve. If I didn’t kill Fairy Tail, August would die. They would kill him. And that would be on me, even if I was dead too. August's was the one life I wasn’t willing to have on my hands.

“We have to.” I said. Even though I knew this was true, saying it out loud brought a new ache to my heart. 

I felt into August's arms wrap around me before I had realized he’d gotten up. His touch pulled out the tears I had been holding back, but he held me there until I was done crying. 

“You should go to bed.” August said after several minutes.

“I don’t want to.” 

“When do you have to met Takashi?” 

“Two.” 

“Then you should sleep, you only have a few hours now.” August said, “Tomorrow's gonna be a long one.” 

I peeled myself away from August with a sigh and walked to my room. “Goodnight,” I whispered. 

“Goodnight Violet.” 

I closed the door and fell into bed fully clothed, and then for the first time in a long time, I cried myself to sleep.


	15. FIFTEEN

I was awakened as the light to my room flipped on. “Wake up Vi,” Called August from the doorway. 

“No,” I groaned. 

“Come on,” August called, “You have to meet Takashi.” 

“Mmf..” I pulled myself out of bed and stumbled past August into the living room. 

“Are you awake?” August asked. 

“I'm awake enough.” I said. 

He nodded, “Then go. Here,” he grabbed the cloak from the floor where I’d left it and draped it over my shoulders. “Turn around so I can tie your mask.” 

I did ask he asked, yawning. 

“And one other thing,” August asked, “Maybe don’t tell Takashi about...you know what.” 

“Your Archive?” 

“Yeah, that,” August said, “I don’t know if he knows about it or not, but it’s best we keep it to ourselves for now. And don’t tell Fairy Tail either. Not yet.” 

I nodded, “My lips are sealed,” I said. 

“Good,” August finished tying my mask, “now, go. You don’t want to be late.” 

I nodded and walked out the door, making sure all of my long brown hair was safely tucked away inside my hood. 

Despite what August said, I couldn't bring myself to believe that Takashi knew anything about the guild’s rule on failed missions. 

Takashi wasn’t like his father. He was kind. If it was up to me, then I would have told Takashi everything that night. Together I knew we could change our master’s mind about the guild. I knew that Takashi believed in the same kind of unity I did. Justice Valkyrie was stronger when we were together. 

I told myself that when we returned to our true guild, the three of us could work to make things better, so that we could take on even more jobs. But I had promised to keep August's magic a secret, so I wouldn't say anything to Takashi. Not yet. 

Despite the horrible implications of August's hidden ability, I found myself somewhat relaxed. I was glad that the two of us weren’t fighting anymore. And August did have a good reason to be lying to me after all. We were still just as close as we’d ever been. 

As far as the realization that I didn’t want to kill fairy tail...I knew there was nothing I could do about it. In the end the job would still be done. And if they were going to die anyway...I thought it was better that it would be by my hand. I didn’t like the idea of them getting taken down by strangers. 

Years from now, I would still be an assassin, and this job would be remembered as nothing more than a stepping stone to greater heights. I had to forget about Fairy Tail. I had to forget about how happy they made me. They weren't my friends, just the means to an end, and once I was partnered with Takashi, I could feel that same joy without them. 

The mask was cold on my face, and the late night wind blew under my cloak as I walked, sending it flying out like some kind of mystical robe. I imagined I looked like a dark angel, but then I realized that was closer to the truth than I would have liked. In this mask, I was not Violet, I was only a Valkyrie. 

I arrived at Takeshi's inn right at two. And Takashi slipped out the front door just as I approached it, wearing a mask of his own. It looked just like mine but blue instead of red. 

“Hey,” I nodded. 

“Hey.” 

“I like you mask.” 

Takeshi's eyes sparked from beneath the plastic, “Couldn't resist a matching set.” he said, “I’ll send it back with you for August after this. It might be helpful for your real mission.” 

“Thanks.” 

“Don’t mention it.” Takashi smiled, “You already to go?” 

I placed my hand on my holstered dagger. “Always.” 

“Then follow me.” 

Takashi took off running, and I did the same, keeping close behind. We kept to the shadows, but not out of necessity. There was no one in the streets at this hour. All of Magnolia seemed to be sleeping around us. 

I loved nights like this. Out on the job, it was like we were the only two people in the world. Like nothing mattered but us. I began to get excited for the kill, even though I knew I would only be helping. 

It was my selfishness that was making me hesitant to kill Fairy tail. But it was because I knew too much about the lives I would be taking, and who would be left behind once they were gone. 

But this job was the opposite, I knew absolutely nothing about the target. I hadn’t even read a file on him as I was sure Takashi had. This was an easy job. But I knew that if my friends at Fairy tail knew...they wouldn't like it. I wondered, that if I had the chance to explain to them the teachings of Justice Valkyrie, would they understand? I didn’t think so. But I wouldn't call that stubbornness. It was something else, some other emotion that I had yet to encounter. 

Ahead of me, Takashi slowed down. He stopped in front of a large, godly house. It looked expensive and showy, so I felt little pity for whoever it was that slept inside.

Takashi crouched next to the door and pulled a lock pick from his pocket. I stood watch. Soon I heard the door slip open, and wasted no time before following Takashi inside. 

The entryway was large and grand as well. I didn’t like it. How anyone could feel at home in a place like this was beyond me, but then again, the only place I stayed long term was the barracks back at the guild, so I probably wasn’t one to judge. 

Once we were inside, we ditched our masks, it was too dark to see our faces now, and the target was as good as dead anyway. I followed Takashi up the stairs, placing my feet just right to avoid creaking. Upstairs all the doors were open except one, the bedroom of the target. I reached out with my silver tongue, making sure the occupant was sleeping. The emotional state was somewhat troubled, a nightmare perhaps, but they were definitely out cold. 

Takashi placed his hand on the doorknob, he looked at me, asking if it was safe to open. I gave him the all clear and then he turned the handle and slipped into the room.

A moment before it happened I knew something was wrong. A sharp snap filled the air, and before I knew what was happening Takashi pushed me to the ground. We landed in a heap on the floor. A magical dart hit the wall above us. Someone had rigged a trap to go off when the door was opened. “Someone tipped the bastard off,” Takashi hissed. 

We heard shuffling from within the room, so I didn’t waste a moment. I sprung up from the floor and ran into the room. There was a lacrama infused cannon pointed at the door. I kicked it over in case there where any more tricks up its sleeve. Then I turned to the bed on my left. Sitting in it was a large man with dark black hair and watery hamster eyes. He was looking at his bedside table, and I realized too late that there was a knife there. 

I lunged for the man’s knife but I was too late, and he picked it up before I had even taken a step. I didn't have enough time to get away before he swung it at my face. I jerked back, but he still nicked my cheek. Then he pushed me against the wall, hard. I felt the plaster crack as I fell backwards, and grunted as I hit the ground. But the time I looked up was Takashi attacking the man with his sword. But then he tripped over the toppled cannon and the man pushed him away before making a break for the door. 

I ran and jumped on his back, bringing us both to the ground. I heard the man’s knife slide away and reached for my own dagger. I was to slow and he got ahold of the handle before I could. 

We wrestled for my dagger, and I was losing, the man was two hundred pounds at least, my little frame was no match. But just as I was about to lose my grip on the knife, Takashi appeared beside me and placed a single finder on the man’s forehead. Immediately the man went limp, crushing me under him.

I shoved the man’s unconscious form off of me and stood up, panting “You don’t use your magic often,” I said. 

“I don’t usually need it.” Takashi said, looking down at the man, “This target was not supposed to be capable of fighting back.” 

“Well good thing you had your Mind Melt ready to go.” I said. 

“Good thing you were here to keep him busy long enough for me to do it.” Takashi smiled. 

“We make a good team.” I said. 

“Yes, we do,” he nodded. 

Takashi grabbed a stray pillow and walked to the limp from the man on the floor. He keeled before the man, “I will free you of this life now.” he said, and then he placed a pillow over the mans face. Takashi’s magic had put him into a deep sleep, so the man didn’t struggle against the smothering. It was a peaceful passing. I was glad for that. 

“Good job today Violet,” Takashi said as we walked down the stairs, “I know you’ll make quick work of Fairy Tail.”


	16. SIXTEEN

When I opened the door to the apartment August was still on the sofa where I’d left him. “You didn’t have to wait up for me,” I said, dumping my mask and cloak in a heap on the floor. 

“Couldn't sleep.” August said, “It’s weird not having you around.” 

“Likewise.” I sighed, sitting down next to him. 

I tucked my hair behind my ear and took a deep breath. I had been so excited to work with Takashi, but...it was good to be back. “Are you okay?” August asked. 

I looked up, “Why wouldn't I be?” 

“Your face.” 

My hand moved instinctively to the place where the target had cut me. Now that it had been pointed out, I could feel the crust of dry blood on my chin and neck, and the wetness around the wound that was still bleeding freely. 

“I forgot about that.” I said. It was normal for me to neglect injuries in the heat of battle, but usually August was there to point them out. I guessed Takashi just didn’t know me well enough to do the same. Not yet anyway. 

August sighed and walked to the kitchen, pulling out the first aid kit. “It doesn't look too bad,” he said, “but you’re going to have to come up with a good excuse for Fairy tail. They’ll probably freak out.” 

“Ah crap, you’re right.” I said, “You don’t think there’s anyway I could hide it do you?” 

“The cut?” August asked, “Maybe if it wasn’t on your face.”

“So that’s a no then.” 

August grunted an affirmative before bringing the first aid kit back to the sofa. 

“It’s probably better to be upfront about it anyway,” he said as he sat down “Once they catch us in one lie, they’ll be more likely to look for more.” 

I didn’t respond as I watched him pour some disinfectant onto a cloth. I braced myself as he brought it to my face, trying my best not to flinch away as the sting bore into my cheek.

“About that,” I said, “I told them about my magic.” I wasn’t sure how he would react, so I tried to sound casual.

“Yeah I heard,” August nodded. His aura didn’t change. 

“You did?” I turned to look at him in surprise, accidentally pressing the cloth harder into my face as I did so. With a hiss of pain I pulled back, forcing my hand down into the cushions of the sofa rather than letting it come up to touch my wound like it wanted to. August waited wordlessly for me to relax before continuing. 

“They were asking me about it when I was at the guild, after talking to Takashi.” 

“Oh…” I guess that made sense. 

“Don’t worry about it though. I played it off.” 

“Sorry,” I said, “I was going to tell you but…” 

“It’s fine.” August said, “I’m good at my job. Besides, I think they like you a lot better now. It was a good move.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Sure,” August put the cloth away and brought forth an adhesive bandage, “They think that you trust them, which makes them trust you.” 

“Yeah, I guess so.”

August pressed the bandage onto my face. I felt the warmth of this hand as he smoothed it over my cheek. I knew that he could read me then, but if he sensed anything abnormal he didn’t comment on it. “We should go to bed.” he said, pulling his hand away, “it’s been...a day.” 

“No kidding,” I nodded. But neither of us moved. There was still some kind of tension in the air; some kind of negativity that I felt needed to be resolved. “Hey August?” I asked. 

“Hm?” 

“Are we...are we good?” 

“Why wouldn't we be?” his tone was calm, but it didn’t soothe me. 

“Well with yesterday, and your archive, and…” I trialed off, wished I had planned my words out before saying them. “and..are we good?” I concluded.

Miraculously, August seemed to make sense of my ramblings, and leaned back against the sofa with a sigh. “Do you think we’re good?” he asked. 

I thought for a moment before answering. “I think this sucks,” I said, “but I think... we’ll make it.” 

August nodded, “Then there’s the answer.” he said, “let’s just go on treating this like a normal job, and once it’s all over...it will just be another couple targets on a long list of kills.” 

“Right,” I nodded, “Okay.” 

After a moment of satisfied silence, I stood, “I'm going to bed,” I decided. 

“Same,” August yawned, “let’s sleep in too. Don’t wake up till you’ve had your fill.” 

“You sure they won’t wonder where we are?” 

“I don’t care,” he said, “Sleep is more important right now, and we can use your cut as an excuse, say we had to fix it.” 

“Alright then,” I smiled, grateful for sleep I had been assuming I would have to miss. “See you tomorrow then.” 

“Sweet dreams.” 

~~~

When I woke up, it was well past noon. I didn’t bother getting dressed before walking out into the living room to see if August was awake. 

When I entered he was sitting on the sofa, typing away at his archive magic. “Morning,” I called. 

“Hey,” August looked up at me, but his hands kept moving around the keyboard. 

“Whatcha doin?” I asked. 

“Looking for Laxus,” he said, “He's the only target that we aren’t close to yet. I haven’t even seen the guy.” 

“Neither have I.” I said, only then realizing that it was true. 

“I asked Mira-Jane about him the other day,” August continued, keeping his eyes on his magic. “she said that the entire Thunder God Tribe shipped out for a job the day before we joined.” 

“Do you know where?” 

August shook his head, “I didn’t want to raise suspension, so I didn't ask.” 

“Good thinking.” I said, “but we can just get him last,” I said, “Even if Laxus wasn’t planning on coming back for a while, I’m sure once the killing starts he’ll come back to see what’s going on.”

August smiled, “That’s perfect.” he pulled his hands away and the golden screen closed.

“It’s also an excuse to not search for him.” I said. 

“That too,” August shrugged, standing and stretching his hands above his head. “Ready to head to the guild?” he asked, “I’m starving.” 

I looked down at my pajamas, then back to August, razing an eyebrow.

“Right, sorry,” he laughed, “We’ll leave in ten.” 

I ducked back into my room and shut the door, changing into a blue hoodie and jeans. It was much too hot to be wearing either of these, which was something I usually took into account. But I knew a few uncharacteristic pieces of clothing would would bring in far less questions than the scars they were hiding. Not to mention the scratches and bruises form my side job the night before. I made myself look as inconspicuous as I could, and then went back out to meet August. 

“Ready?” he asked. 

I nodded, and off we went. 

On the walk to the guild hall I noticed that the town was full of life, nothing like it had been the last time I was out, when Takashi and I ran through the empty streets. This was a whole different Magnolia, but I couldn’t tell which one I liked better. 

As we approached the guild hall I pulled my hair out to hide the bandage on my cheek. I knew that questions where inevitable, but that didn’t mean I had to like it. 

August pushed his way into the guild hall, pausing to let me pass ahead of him. The moment he opened the door I knew something was wrong. The atmosphere was off; It was uneasy, afraid. 

I looked up at August. I knew he couldn't scene it the way I could. I was about to warn him when Lucy ran up to us and the words died in my throat. 

“There you guys are,” she said, “We were so worried when you didn’t come in this morning.” 

“Worried?” August asked, “Why?” I felt his emotions shift to match the others that were swirling around my head. Fear. Worry. Apprehension. 

“So you haven’t heard the news?” Lucy asked quietly, “A man was killed last night. The magic council thinks it might have been because of an assassin’s guild.” 

My heart skipped a beat, and I could feel August's doing the same. I noticed Grey and Natsu walking over to join us, but I didn’t look at them. I had to keep my face neutral. 

“That’s horrible,” August said. His light hearted tone didn’t match the calculated manipulation that was flowing thought his head. “Do you know the man who died?” 

“Not personally,” Lucy said, “but still...it’s creepy...assassins in our own town.” 

“It makes me sick,” Grey said. His tone was like shards of glass, falling into my heart. “What kind of person kills for money?” 

I shoved my hands into my pockets, if anyone read me now I would have a lot of explaining to do. 

“I’m just glad you two are safe,” Lucy said, “What kept you so long anyway?” 

“We slept in a little,” August shrugged. I could tell he was happy for the change of subject. “Sorry if we scared you. We were planning on getting here earlier, but Violet fell down the stairs. We had to patch her up before we came.” 

I felt everyone's eyes move to my cheek. I looked at the floor, tilting my head so that my hair fell from behind my ear, as if it could hide the injury. 

“Ouch,” Natsu said, obvious to my discomfort, “How’d it happen?” 

“Like August said,” I shrugged, still not looking up, “I fell down the stairs. There was a stay nail sticking out of the banister, so...yeah.” 

I read them to make sure my lie was working. I was safe, they still trusted me. “You know,” Lucy said, “We can have Wendy look at that for you, she is a healer after all.” 

I felt August tense next to me. I prayed the others hadn’t noticed. If Wendy saw my cut...would she be able to figure out that it was older than we’d said it was? 

“I’m okay,” I said quickly, “I can hardly even feel it.” 

“Yeah but, a cut is still a cut, right,” Lucy asked. 

“I don’t want to trouble her.” I said. I had to get out of this. I forced my breathing to stay even. Calm down. 

“Wendy!” Lucy called. 

My heart sank.

A bluenet about my age stumbled out of the crowd followed by a white exceed. “What is it?” she asked. 

“Violet fell down the stairs this morning,” Natsu explained, “We thought you could help.” 

“Of course,” Wendy smiled. I felt her eagerness to help, as well as the natural goodness that fulled it. My heart twisted. 

“You-you really don’t have to,” I said, “I’ll be fine.” 

“Don’t worry,” Wendy said, “It’s no trouble, follow me into the infirmary.” 

I took a deep breath. If I protested more it would be obvious I was hiding something, assuming it wasn’t already. 

I looked to August, “I’ll meet you back here in a bit.” 

I felt understanding wash over him, and he nodded accepting my decision. 

“See you then.” 

I turned away and followed Wendy and Carla into the infirmary. It was up to me to lie my way out of this one. 

“You can sit there,” Wendy pointed to a bed near the door. I did as she asked and tried to calm my nerves, preparing for her touch. Think happy thoughts. I told myself. “Could you take the bandage off please?” 

I did so, ripping it off all at once without flinching. This earned me a sidelong glance from the exceed. I mentally kicked myself. The Violet they knew was definitely not a rip the band-aid off in one go kind of girl. 

Wendy’s aura reminded unchanged, as she leaned in to examine the cut. She reached under my chin to get a better look, but as soon as her hand made contact, she jumped back. “Sorry,” she whispered, “Erza told me...but I forgot. I was just startled is all.” 

“It’s okay,” I said, grateful that she was too surprised to have noticed what I was feeling. 

“The good news is, it looks like your body is already pretty fast at healing, and it’s not infected...” Wendy said, “So this should be pretty easy.” she reached out her hands and hovered them over my face, there was a blue light, and I could feel the sting of the cut disappear. 

“There,” Wendy pulled away, “Good as new!” 

I touched my face, the skin was smooth again. “That was amazing.” I said. I had never experienced magic like that. “Thank you.” 

Wendy beamed and lead the way back to the main hall where August was waiting. He gave me a look, silently asking how it went. I nodded, telling him everything was fine.I felt relief wash over him, and I relaxed as well. That could have been a disaster. It was a good thing Wendy was so innocent and willing to help, otherwise she might of seen how strange it all was.

She was so kind. I wondered if that would change when her friends started disappearing. 

“I need some air.” I announced, making my way for the door. Lucky no one followed me, and I walked out into the sunny street. 

I took a deep breath. Everything was going to be fine. 

“Violet?” 

I looked up to find Takashi standing in front of me, a bag in his hand. 

“Hey,” I said. 

“Hey,” he nodded. He looked over me, and for once I found the gaze welcome. “your cheek...it’s…”

“Healed?” I asked, “Yeah, Fairy Tail has a sky dragon slayer.” 

“Is that so...convent,” Takashi nodded, “Is August around?”

“Yeah, he’s inside,” I said, “Why?” 

“I brought his mask,” Takashi said, “and I wanted to talk to him.” 

“Oh. Okay yeah, I’ll go get him.” 

“Thanks.” 

I walked back into the guild hall and found August. He was talking to some non-targets at the bar, so I figured it was safe to interrupt. “Takashi is here,” I said, “he wants to talk to you.” 

“That’s the guy you were with yesterday isn’t it?” Lucy asked. 

“Yeah,” I nodded, “he's in town for a few days...visiting family.” 

“I should go meet him,” August said, “I’ll take him back to the apartment?” 

“Yeah that’s fine,” I said, “See you later.” 

“Right,” August rushed off, leaving me alone in the guild hall. I watched him go before taking his place at the bar and ordering some food. 

Lucy filled Mira Jane in about Takashi, and the two of them teased me light heartedly. Though I noticed they didn’t ask to many questions about how we’d meet. I guessed they could understand wanting to hide my past.

After I finished my food, I wandered over to the job board, I wasn’t looking for anything in particular, but August and I would need more cash soon. Most of the options were pretty far away, and the few jobs that were close by seemed really difficult; finding an ancient book, taking down a guild of thieves. All of them were way out of me and August's league. Of course we could always ask someone else to go with us again. 

“Looking for a job?” Natsu asked, appearing at my side. 

“Just seeing what’s here.” I said, trying my best to stay calm in his presence, “but all the close ones look too hard.” 

Natsu shrugged, “What about that one?” he pointed to the one with the thieves’ guild.

“Me and August against an entire guild?” I asked, “You’ve got to be crazy.” 

“I bet me and Happy could do it.” 

“Aye.” 

If it wasn’t for my silver tongue, I would have assumed they were joking...but the two of them seemed completely confident. 

“You guys could come with us again if you want.” Natsu offered. 

“Yeah?” I thought over my options, “let me ask August,” I said. 

“Sure,” Natsu pulled the job off the board, “We weren’t going to leave until tomorrow anyway, so just let us know by then.” 

“Okay.” 

Natsu walked up to the counter to get the job. I decided to go ask August what he thought about it now. Surely whatever Takashi would be done talking to him by the time I got back to the apartment. And even if he wasn’t it wouldn't hurt to go say hi. After all, Lucy and Mira seemed to think we would be good together, so he probably wouldn't mind.


	17. SEVENTEEN

I made my way back to the apartment, already excited to see Takashi again. I walked into the building inconspicuously, but once I was alone, I practically ran up the stairs. I placed my hand on the door knob, ready to open it, but I stopped myself, there were raised voices inside. 

“You could have ruined our whole mission,” August was saying. 

“But I didn’t.” Takashi answered, as cool and collected as ever, “Everything is fine.” 

“Only because Violet and I have been working so hard to gain their trust.” August countered, “What were you thinking.” 

“I was thinking that you would be fine with it, since nothing bad happened,” Takashi said, “I was just-”

“You were just what?” August interrupted, “You were just putting Violet in your back pocket?” 

“No,” Takashi said. His aura changed...he was lying? “and even if I was, what’s it to you? Just because you found her doesn't mean she belongs to you.” 

August became more angry, “she doesn't belong to anyone.” he said, “she just is.” 

“She belongs to the guild,” Takashi said “both of you do, and not the one you’re traipsing around playing house with either. We didn’t give you this time allowance so you could waste our resources. I want results. I want them yesterday.” 

“This takes time,” August said, “You can’t just-” 

“I can.” Takashi said. “And I am. Hanging around that fairy scum has made you soft. I want a kill. Do it, or I might just have to add some less than positive details to your debrief.” he took a long breath, and I felt his anger subside, “I’m leaving tonight, but when I get back to the compound, a death at Fairy Tail better be the damn headline news!” 

I heard foot steppes coming for the door and quickly moved farther down the hallway. When the door opened it hid me from view until Takashi turned around, stomping down the stairs without looking at me. 

Before the door had even fallen all the way closed, I pulled it open again. August was sitting on the sofa rubbing his temples. “What is it now?” he looked up to see me, “Oh..hey. Did you meet Takashi in the hall?”

“No…” I said, “he didn’t see me.”

“So…” August's brow furrowed, “You over heard us then didn’t you?”

“Yes.” 

August sighed, “Well now at least I don’t have to repeat it.” he didn’t ask me how long I had been listening, or what I overheard, but my silver tongue told me it was because he didn’t want to know. “Why are you back so early anyway?” 

“Oh…” I looked at the ground, “Natsu invited us on another job tomorrow morning,”

August leaned forward, “What kind of job?” he asked.

“It’s crazy,” I said, “They want us to take out an entire guild of thieves. It’s going to be a tough one.” 

August smiled, “Do you think it’s hard enough that it could be expected to be dangerous?” 

“Well yeah, I mean it is a whole guild of people to take out right?” I wasn’t sure who this wasn’t obvious to August, “I guess they don’t have any magic, but still.” 

“No, like,” August ran his hands through his hair, looking for the right words, but his swirling pool of emotions couldn't help me determine his meaning. “So you think that...there would be a lot of questions, if someone where to not come back.” 

My eyes widened, “You don’t mean...” 

“You heard Takashi.” August said, “I don’t like it either, but this is a good opportunity. How far away is the job?” 

“Next town over.” I said, “and we'd probably walk, cuz Natsu…” his name tasted bitter, like I was no longer worthy to say it, “If we’re going to do this,” I said, “can it be my kill?” 

August raised his eyebrows. 

“I think he would make a good one hundred. Don’t you think?” 

August nodded, understanding. “Yeah,” he said, “I think that would be good.” 

I nodded, taking a deep breath. Finally one hundred kills, and yet this one was all to soon. 

“Is he the only one going?” August asked. 

“Happy,” I said. 

“Shame,” August said, “no witnesses.” 

I nodded, repeating the same slogan, “No witnesses.” 

August stood up and began pacing, building a plan. “One of us should probably stay back at the guild for this first one,” he said, “So as not to arouse too much suspicion.” 

“Yeah,” I nodded, “but Natsu invited both of us. We need a good reason to split up.”

“Hmm…” August paced some more, “Oh, I’d got it! Takashi!” 

“Takashi?” 

“We can say that he’s still in town,” August said, “and that I want to stay back in case he needed anything, you know, like he’s a high maintenance friend.” 

I nodded, “That might work.” 

It would definitely make August look good. 

August stopped pacing and stared at the kitchen table where two masks were sitting. Mine, and the one that had been Takeshi's. “You could use one of those,” Augest said, “in case anything goes wrong, you can just run and then come back as you, Natsu wouldn't be dead, but he wouldn't be able to rat us out either.” 

“Yeah,” I nodded, “fail safe.” 

“Alright,” August nodded, “Do you remember the location of the thieves guild?”

“Yeah, I think so.” 

“Write it down. I’ll take the mask and whatever else you need later tonight, hide them so you can get them after the job.” 

“Thank you.” I walked into my room and tore a scrap of paper out of my notebook.

“Is there anything I’m missing?” August asked, I could feel him running through the plan in his head.

“Well, we still have to tell Natsu I'm coming.” 

“Right,” August nodded, “I’ll do that now. You make a plan for what you’re going to do out there. Everything needs to be flawless.” 

“Right.” 

August rushed out the door, locking it behind him. I sat down on the sofa and put my head between my knees. No more pretending. By this time tomorrow, Natsu Dragneel would be dead.


	18. EIGHTEEN

I didn’t get as much sleep as I would have liked, but it didn’t matter now. I was to meet Natsu and Happy at the guild hall in thirty three minutes. There was no more time to try and catch forty winks. 

I got out of bed and slipped into an all black stealth suit, then pulled my normal close on over top of it. I turned in the mirror, making sure the stealth suit was perfectly hidden. I placed my dagger in its scabbard, as well as some throwing knives at my waist. I slipped another knife into my boot for good measure. Even though I had been over my plan a million times, both with August and alone, killing Natsu was going to be no easy feat. I would need to maintain perfect focus. 

I did one last check in the mirror, making sure that nothing seemed out of place. I practiced the smile that I would use to greet Natsu, then I walked into the living room where August was waiting. 

“Glad you’re up,” he said, “I was about to wake you.” he didn't ask if I’d sleep well, and judging by the dark circles under his eyes he hadn’t either. 

“You know the plan?” he asked. 

“We went over it a million times last night,” I reminded him. 

“Well what’s one more then?” I could tell that he was asking not for the sake of my nerves, but for his. 

I sighed. “I will go to the guild hall with you, I’ll act sad that you can’t come with me, and not want to leave right away. Then I’ll go to the thieves’ guild with Natsu.” 

“And then?” August pushed. 

“Then we will do the job like nothing is wrong, but when I see that about half of the thieves’ are taken care of I will slip away from the battle and find my mask and gloves where you hid them in the big oak tree to the south of the building.” 

“Good, and then?” 

“I’ll put them on and ditch my civilian clothes, and then I’ll attack Natsu from behind right as he finishes the last of the thieves. I’ll take care of him, and then Happy, and then I’ll add whatever injuries are needed to make it look believable to both Natsu and myself, so that it looks like we were attacked.” 

“Then?” August asked. 

“I’ll change back into my clothes and walk to the road, and try to get a ride back to the guild hall.” 

August nodded, satisfied. “And then you’ll have a lot of acting to do.” he said. 

“But if I seem off, you’ll blame it on shock and we’ll be golden.” 

“Right,” August nodded. We stood there in silence. I tried to push my fear away. If I kept to my plan, everything would be alright. And even if something did go wrong, I had the mask, so I could just make a run for it, then come back later as the Violet that Fairy Tail knew. Even worst case scenario was pretty good. I told myself that there was no reason to worry. 

August opened the door for me, and we made our way to the guild hall together. But even as we did, I knew that when I came back it would not be the same, not after I told them what had happened. 

I told myself that Fairy Tail wasn’t my problem, that I would be leaving with August soon anyway. It didn’t make me feel any better. 

~~~

We approached the guild hall all to soon, and I tried to push my fear aside. I had to act normal. I had to be normal. 

August placed his hand on the door, preparing to push it open. “Ready?” he asked. 

I took a deep breath, then nodded. 

August lead the way forward, and the emotional atmosphere of the guild hall washed over me just as strong as the first time I had set foot inside. I spotted Natsu at the bar, and took a long deep breath before walking towards him and leaning against the counter causeway.

“Heya,” he waved, “Glad you could make it.” 

He was happy to see me, excited for the mission, satisfied by the food he was eating. Nothing out of the ordinary. 

“Yeah,” I nodded, “I’m looking forward to our job.” was that too formal sounding? I couldn't tell. People seemed to make friends fast at Fairy Tail. Lucky Natsu’s emotions didn’t change. 

“You need to get any breakfast before we go?” Natsu asked. 

“I already ate.” I lied. It was a bad habit of mine to skip meals before missions. I knew that the lack of nourishment could cause problems, but it was more likely that I would end up throwing it up anyway. 

“Alright then,” Natsu cracked his knuckles, “Let’s get this show on the road.” 

I glanced at August, “yeah…” 

“Pity you can’t come too,” Natsu told him, as though an afterthought. 

“Yeah well,” August shrugged, “gotta be there for Takashi.” 

Natsu nodded, understanding. He was a good friend. 

“It is going to be weird not having you with me though” I lamented. 

I felt August's heart sink, he’d read my double meaning. “You’ll be fine,” he assured me, “it’s just like any other job.” 

I nodded. Just like any other kill. 

“Welp,” Natsu said, “You ready Vi?” 

“Yep.” no.

“Happy!” Natsu called. “We’re heading out!” 

Happy flew out of the crowd, landing on the bar next to us, “let’s go!” he said. 

I followed Natsu and Happy out of the hall, not trusting myself to look back at August again. I used my silver tongue to tell that Natsu really did think this would be like any other job. Before I could stop myself, I ran up to walk next to him. “Isn’t there anyone you want to say goodbye to?” I asked. 

Stupid, Stupid Stupid. You’re going to tip him off, dumb ass. 

Natsu tilted his head to the side, “It’s not that long a job, Vi,” he said, “We’ll probs be back before dinner.” 

I will. 

“I guess you’re right,” I said, thought I wished he would have taken my advice. He wasn’t going to have time to make his peace. But there was nothing I could do about that. 

I was going to release him from this life, free him from the world. I should have been happy for him. But the thought of what kind of guild would be waiting for me when I returned from this job alone lingered in the back of my mind. And I knew that if I kept thinking about it, I would never be able to hold on long enough to do what I needed to. 

So I pushed the thoughts aside, and followed Natsu out into the sun lit streets of Magnolia.


	19. NINETEEN

Natsu and I walked side by side. It was a position I wasn’t used to, as August usually did the talking, leaving me to trail behind the main group. But August wasn’t here to help me this time. Lucky for me Natsu seemed quieter than usual, perhaps it was because he knew I didn’t want to talk. I hoped not. I didn’t want any favors from him. Not when…

“Are you excited?” Natsu asked. 

The question startled me. “Hmm?” 

“Excited for the job?” 

“Oh,” I shrugged, “I mean, I'm excited for the money.”

“Not for beating all the other guys?” Natsu asked.

“I guess I just don’t like confrontation as much.” I said, “I’m not that good at it anyway.” liar.

“I'm sure you’re plenty good,” Natsu said. 

I shrugged, brushing of the complement. I didn’t want it. I didn’t want him to be nice to me. 

We walked in silence a little longer, and after what seemed like forever, the cobbled streets gave way to packed dirt and we entered the forest. We were getting close. “So…” I said, “What’s our plan of attack?”

Natsu rolled his eyes, “We go in there and beat the crap out of em.” he said.

“Great plan.” I muttered.

“I try to keep it simple,” Natsu surged. 

I knew he was trying to be funny, but I was in no mood to take a joke, so I said nothing.

Soon, we were able to see a structure through the trees, it was old, and crumbing, but I had to admit it did make a cool hideout. We walked towards it, and I noted a large oak tree a way off from the entrance. If I looked closely I could make out a wisp of white, part of my mast, waiting where August had left it the night before. 

Now I just had to get in, wait until Natsu and Happy where distracted, and then get out. Then the real work would begin. I sighed as I watched the ground pass beneath my feet. I noticed a few feet ahead of us there was a strange kind of glint along the path, like some kind of string... Too late I realized that it was. 

“Stop!” I cried to Natsu. 

“What?” he took one more step, activating the trip wire what had been set. 

I lunged forward and tackled him to the ground just barely missing a magic dart. Alarms sounded from the building. 

Natsu and I lay on the ground in a heap, but only for a moment, before we both stood and faced the building. 

“Looks like they know we’re here.” I said. 

“Thanks.” 

“Thanks?” 

“For saving me,” Natsu explained, “I thought I was toast.”

I tightened my grip on my danger, it had only been self preservation. If he died now, I wasn’t sure I would be able to get out of this. I was confident in my skills, but I knew it would be impossible to fight a whole guild by myself. I had to keep Natsu alive for now. Just until it was the right moment to kill him. 

“Yeah, no problem.” I muttered. 

Slowly the door to the building ahead opened. The people inside were not friendly looking. I couldn't see all of them clearly, but there where at least ten, most of them male. They all looked decently strong, but I could sense that Natsu and I were the only mages in the area. This would be hard, but not impossible. 

Natsu smiled, “Awesome,” he said, “Why go to them when they’ll just come to us.” 

I understood his reasoning, but this new development would be problematic. If Natsu and Happy didn’t go inside the building, there would be no chance for me to retrieve my mask without getting caught. I had to think of a way to get rid of him for a few minutes, but in the meantime we had to deal with the thieves. 

Even though we were ridiculously outnumbered, many of the figures inside the building seemed hesitant. I could feel their fear. I reminded myself to take it easy on the silver tongue. I didn't want to burn myself out before the real job started. 

Finally, one brave soul charged as, soon followed by his buddies. I pulled out my danger. 

Natsu planted himself in the dirt in front of me and promptly erupted into flames. He had no intention of running into the building. I would have to inch us toward it during the fight, as well as not letting my guard down. This was going to be a pain. 

I took a few steps back as the first of the thieves got close to us. Natsu released a gust of flame straight down the path, forcing the enemy to scatter in all directions. I saw this as an opportunity, it would be less dangerous to get up close when they were spread out. 

I ran, veering to the right, the first man I came across threw a slow punch, but I ducked and slammed my elbow into his stomach. He shrunk away, leaving himself open, but I couldn't kill him. Not in front of Natsu and Happy, so I kicked his legs out from under him and went on. 

Out of the corner of my eye I saw that Natsu was getting closer to the building. We wanted to stay close to me, but he didn’t like where I was leading him. He didn’t want to go inside. To bad. 

I took down a few more thugs before I came to one that was obviously trained in fighting. He wasn’t just throwing punches like a bar fight the way the others had. He had a good stance, and fast hands. I had to keep my guard up. 

I locked in. he was faster than I’d expected, but not as fast as me. I ran in circles around him, dogging as I went, searching for an opening. I thought I had found one, but when I went for it he tripped me. I staggered, struggling to retain balance. One hard blow to to my right cheek and I landed on my butt. 

I swung my legs and knocked his away. At least now we were both on the ground. The only thing I could think to do was jump on top of him, smashing my knee into his face in the process, but he wasn't down yet. I placed my hand on his forehead and flooded his mind with apathy. His body relaxed, and I let go as soon as I could, but I still got a strong dose of his emotion. Fear, and the shame of losing. I pushed the feelings down. I couldn't let them affect me right now. 

I got up and looked around to find that more than half of the thieves were down. Time was running out. I had to find a way to get to my mask unnoticed. 

Natsu appeared at my side, still engaged with someone. “You good?” he asked as he dodged a punch, “You used magic.”

“Yeah…” I nodded. 

“What did you get?” 

I was used to this question coming from August, but it hardly mattered, his concern gave me an idea. 

“Anger,” I lied.

“Do you know how to get rid of it?” 

“Yeah!” I pumped my fist, “Punching people!” I turned and sprinted inside the building.

“Vi? Wait!”

I knew Natsu won't be able to finish of his attacker in time to follow me closely. I had a chance. 

The building was full of thieves, but I ignored most of them and looked for some kind of back door. Lucky for me there was a doorway behind a bar marked exit. I ran to it and vaulted over the counter. On the other side was some kind of kitchen, but I paid it no attention and ran back outside. 

I kept close to the wall and crept back around to the front of the building, just in time to see Natsu and Happy barge inside, followed by the remaining thieves. Perfect. I dropped into the bushes and crawled over to the big oak tree. I made sure no one was looking before grabbing the mask and gloves and then sinking back into the underbrush. I quickly pulled off my shirt and pants, leaving me in only the stealth suit that had been hiding underneath. I put on my gloves to stop any unwanted reading. I twisted my hair into a low pony before shove it under the back collar. I put my mask on then pulled up the hood. 

I took a deep breath. There was only one last thing to do. Kill Natsu Dragneel.


	20. TWENTY

I crouched in the underbrush outside the thieves’ compound. Natsu was somewhere inside. If I wanted him I would have to go inside the makeshift guild hall, but there was no way to see where he was without moving from my hiding spot, something I wasn’t yet ready to do. 

I felt the fear from the thief I took down was pumping through my veins. My head. It was so loud. I had to focus. How could I get into the building without risk of being seen? 

My plan had been to kill Natsu just as he finished up the last of the thieves but I had gotten to my mask I lot later than I’d intended, so for all I knew there were none left. If we weren't distracted...then I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to pull this off. 

I felt my bole body start to itch. My breath was hot inside the mask. The fear still pounded inside me. “Control,” I whispered, “Control.” 

It was too late. I began hyperventilating. My plan was ruined. Should I ditch it? Kill Natsu another day? But I’d already gotten this far, and Takashi had demanded results. But what could I do?

Before I could decide, Natsu and happy emerged from the building, Natsu felt triumphant. He must had won the fight. I was out of time. Once he stepped back on to the road his emotions changed, we was concussed, quickly being replaced with worry. 

“Vi?” he yelled. 

I didn't answer, but I got an idea.

“Violet?!”

I used my silver toung to throw my voice, making the sound come from a few yards away from me. “Natsu!” I yelled, “Help!” 

Natsu tensed, he was worried now, worried for me. I tried not to think about it. It was that worry that would get him killed. 

“Violet!” Natsu ran towards the spot where my voice was sounding. “Where are you?” 

“I’m over here!” Natsu ran past the bush where I was really hiding, calling my name in vain. 

I moved my voice to a nearby bush, a few feet to the left of where Natsu was standing. “I’m right here.” I said. Natsu turned to the bush, unknowingly putting his back towards me. 

Careful not to make a single sound, I crawled out of my hiding place and behind Natsu, dagger ready. 

I waited until I was right behind Natsu before standing up. He was taller than me, but when I stood on tiptoe, I had a good shot at the base of his neck. I raised the knife above my head with both hands, and took a deep breath, knowing that by the time I exhaled, he would be gone. 

But the second I looked up, and I saw a flash of blue near the building. Happy’s eyes widened when he saw me. My stomach dropped. In my fear, I had forgotten about him.

“Natsu! Watch out!” Happy called. 

Before I could react, Natsu turned on the dime, jumping away from danger. I fell back, fearing any blows, but none came. Not yet. 

This was the worst possible scenario. In all cases, I wanted to avoid an all out fight. It would take a miracle for me to win against Natsu like this. And maybe even more than that.

“Who are you?” Natsu asked. His usual friendliness was gone. This was a side of him that I hadn’t seen before. This would be unpredictable. Things just kept getting worse.

“Where is Violet?” Natsu asked.

Even though I knew my fate was tied, I made a last attempt. I used my magic to distort my voice, making it sound like a man’s.

“The girl is no longer here.” I said. 

Natsu’s face distorted into something I had never seen before. “If you did anything to hurt her, I swear I’ll-”

“She has not been harmed.” I said. I sensed him relax, thought his face didn’t show the change. “We are friends,” I assured him, “Return to your guild.” if I could get him to drop his guard I might have a shot. 

“I’m not going back without her.” Natsu said, “Now tell me where she is or I’ll beat it out of you.” 

I shivered. This was it. I was done for. 

“Not gonna answer huh?” Natsu asked, “Then I guess it’s on to plan B.” 

He charged at me, but I was ready, I side stepped just as he barreled past, then ran in the opposite direction. I needed a plan. 

I was slightly faster than him, and he didn’t know who I was. Those were my only advantages. I knew he was much stronger than me. If it came down to brute force I was screwed for sure. I couldn't let it come to that. 

“Running away are we?” Natsu called. He let out a roar, lighting several trees beside me a light. But I was unscathed. I gripped my danger tighter. If this was going to go well, I had to be all in. 

I sprinted at Natsu and ducked under his right arm, determined to get behind him, but he turned, always keeping me in view. 

He threw a few punches, but they were too powerful to be fast, luckily none of them landed. Once I got the hang of dodging, I began to hum under my breath. It was a lullaby that I had learned long ago, in another life. But it was slowing Natsu down. He was getting sleepy. 

In return I got more fear. But this was not the frantic type that I had received from the thug. No. this was a simmering fear of lost. It was the fear Natsu felt for Violet. For me. Oh god...

I lost concentration, and a punch landed in my stomach, sending me flying into a tree. I felt the air leave my lungs as my back made contact with the wood, but I had no time to lick my wounds, Natsu’s next attack was on its way. 

Another fire dragon roar came for me, but this time I didn't have time to give it a wide enough birth. The flames hit one of my outstretched arms. I felt blisters rise and pop, but I resisted the urge to scream. I cradled my arm and staggered back. Natsu just watched me. 

“Where is Violet?” he asked.

“She’s not here.” I said. 

Happy appeared next to Natsu. “He’s not lying,” he said, “I flew all around. There’s no one. Only him.” 

The two continued talking in hushed voices, but I couldn't make out the words. Natsu never once took his eyes off me. I guess even the Salamander isn’t that stupid.

I realized then how problematic it would be if Happy decided to carry Natsu. I couldn’t let him have control of the sky. And also, if I did somehow manage to kill Natsu, Happy would fly off to the guild and ruin my cover story. I had to get rid of him. And soon. But how? 

I looked around on the ground, searching for anything I could use. The knocked out bodies of the thieves guild where still strewn around the road, many of them with weapons still intact.

I scanned thought for something, anything that would give me the upper hand. Then I saw it. Strapped to the waste of one of the thugs was a smoke bomb. I couldn't believe my luck, the only problem was that it was a couple yards ahead of me, about halfway between Natsu and I. this was going to be tricky. 

I took a small step forward, keeping my eyes on Natsu. He saw me move, but did nothing. Just stood there, still listening to Happy. 

I took a bigger step. This time Natsu turned to fully face me. Happy stopped talking. We stared each other down, but he didn’t move to attack me. Another step. Still nothing. A few more. I was halfway to the bomb. Natsu was still staring at me. One more step.

“What are you playing at?” Natsu asked. 

I took another step.

“Answer me.” Natsu growled.

“I don’t know what you mean.” I said, my voice still distorted. 

Natsu started at me. He was ready to pounce. I had to move fast. I sprinted forward and made a dive for the bomb, just narrowly missing another gust of fire. Before Natsu could recover I pulled the pin, and the world was enveloped in a dark grey cloud. But I knew that I still wasn’t safe. Natsu’s keen sense of smell would lead him to me if I wasn’t quick. My grip tightened on my knife as I stood up and closed my eyes. Natsu wasn’t the only one that could sense people without sight. I searched for the energy around me. There were only two that were awake. One was angry, full of adrenaline. The other was slightly scared, but trusting. That was Happy. That was my target. 

I moved towards Happy, weary of Natsu’s movements as well. When I thought I was within a few feet of the little cat I opened my eyes. I could see him through the smoke. His back was turned to me. Perfect. 

My grip tightened on my dagger as I stepped forward and wrapped my other hand around Happy’s neck. Immediately his aura changed. He lost control of his magic in his panic, and his wings disappeared. 

I turned and ran in the opposite direction of Natsu, but I had only barely made it out of the smoke when Happy cried out. 

“Natsu!” He called, “he’s over here, he got me!” 

I cursed under my breath.

“I’m coming!” Natsu yelled, he was angrier than ever. I held my dagger close to Happy’s neck, assurance that Natsu wouldn't attack as soon as he saw us. 

The smoke cleared as fire punched thought it. I wondered why Natsu hadn’t done that in the first place. Perhaps he’d thought he had the advantage, but he had been sorely mistaken. 

Natsu came barreling toward me, but when he saw happy he stopped dead in his tracks. I smirked beneath my mask, but Happy’s squirming body reminded me of what I was about to do. I felt sick. 

“Natsu,” Happy cried, “he’s scared.”

At first I didn’t know what he was talking about. But then I looked down at my hand. There was a tear in one of my gloves. My bare flesh was touching Happy’s soft fur. My heart sank. He could read me. 

“He’s scared,” Happy repeated. 

Natsu stared at me, but I couldn't get read on him, I sensed gears turning, his thinking drowning everything else out. “Why is he scared Happy?” he asked.

“I don’t know.” Happy said, “he just is.” 

I wanted to throw up. 

Natsu took a step forward. I took one back instinctively. He raised an eyebrow. What was I doing? I had the upper hand here. I had a hostage. I took a step forward, holding Happy out in front of me. “I’m warning you….”

Natsu took another step forward. It reminded me of my journey to the smoke bomb. I scanned the ground, making sure Natsu didn’t have the same idea. But there was nothing there. And Natsu wasn't looking down. He was looking right at me. Another step. 

I swallowed. “I’ll do it!” I yelled, moving my knife closer to Happy’s neck. 

Natsu took another step forward.

“I would stay back if I were you!” I warned. 

Natsu didn’t move.

“I said get back!” 

Nothing. 

“Get back!” I yelled. 

Natsu took another step forward, “If you were going to do it,” he said, “You would have done it by now.” 

My hands began to shake. “You don’t know that.” I said. 

“I do actually.” 

“No.” I said. “No!” 

Natsu stepped forward again, but I hardly noticed. I had to kill Happy. I had to. 

“You don’t want to kill for no reason.” Natsu said, “That’s why you’re scared.”

“I have a reason.” I shaped. 

Natsu raised an eyebrow.

“No witnesses.” I whispered. Every assassin knew that rule. “No witnesses.”

“No witnesses to what?” Natsu asked.

“The death of Natsu Dragneel.” I said, that’s what I was here for. To kill him to do the job. I had to. For August. It was them or us. 

Natsu wasn’t afraid of me. He took another step. “Why are you wearing a mask then?” he asked. “If there’s not gonna be any witnesses, why do you need to hide?”

Tremors rolled up my body. Was he right? It didn’t matter. Natsu was only trying to get me to drop Happy, then the battle would continue. And I would lose. I looked down at Happy’s still squirming body. Killing him now would be a mistake. Natsu would surely lose it. 

But I had to get rid of him. I lowered my knife. 

“See,” Natsu said, “You don't want to do this.” 

“You’re wrong.” I flipped the knife in my hand and brought the hilt down on Happy’s head, knocking him out cold. I threw his limp body over my shoulder and ran at Natsu. 

I was able to make a few hits before Natsu came to his senses, but when I went in with my dagger, he grabbed my wrist, stopping the blade inches from his face. I wasted no time before throwing a punch under his jaw, sending him staggering backwards. 

I knew Natsu was getting ready for an attack, so I ran past him, getting out of the way. But he recovered faster than I’d anticipated…

“Fire dragon iron fist!” 

his blow hit my stomach like a freight train, sending my flying. I tried to control my fall with my good arm, but I was not as practiced with my left hand. I landed with a sticking crack. A whimper escaped me as I hit the ground. It was definitely broken.

“Your voice…” Natsu said.

My heart stopped. He must have heard me cry out. 

“What about it.” I asked, distortion back on.

Natsu blinked. I hoped he was too dumb to connect the dots. 

“Where is Violet?” he asked.

“Gone.” I panicked. He was about to find out. I had to do something. I jumped to my feet and ran at Natsu again. He blocked my attacks but didn’t deliver any of his own. 

My movements became more desperate, ever punch sent waves of pain up my arms, and all for nothing. But still he didn’t attack me. 

I charged at him again, expecting another block, but this time he sidestepped, and my own momentum made me fall, and all I got was a face full of dirt. 

“Natsu?” the voice came from a few yards away, where I’d thrown happy. Was he awake already? 

“Happy!” Natsu ran to his friend's side, ignoring me for a moment. I struggled to sit up and asses my injuries. Now would be a good time to run. But if Natsu knew it was me...where would I go? I had no way to get back to August without going to the guildhall, and then I would be dead for sure. I looked down at my left arm. My sleeve had been torn to ribbons, exposing my guild mark thought the chunks of stringy fabric. I stared at it; the emblem of the guild I hated. The guild I was now at the mercy of. How it had come to this?

I looked back at Natsu and happy. They where both staring at me. No one moved. Natsu's turned to Happy, but kept his eyes on me. “Go back to the guild.” I heard him say. “Tell Gramps what happened. Don’t let August leave till I get there. Got it?” 

Happy nodded and summoned his wings. I watched him go, unable to stop it. I had officially failed. Now all I could do was try and get away. 

Natsu sauntered towards me. It was obvious he no longer wanted to fight. I struggled to stand up as he came, shrinking away from him and deeper into the forest. 

“I’m not going to hurt you.” he said. 

I continued to step back. 

“I’m not going to hurt you.” 

I was too distracted to try and read him. I was sure he would know that. It had to be a lie. 

I turned and ran as fast as I could. I knew that in my state, Natsu could easily overtake me. But I hoped he wouldn't. I hoped he would just let me go, leave me alone to die. But of course I wasn’t that lucky. 

I heard footsteps behind me. I heard him calling “stop.” 

I didn’t listen. I didn’t dare turn around. I sensed him getting closer, and tried to quicken my pace, but there was only so much my body could take. It was starting to give out already. 

Natsu passed me with ease, and then came to a stop a few feet in front of me. It really was over. Everything I had worked for. Everything August had worked for. It was all about to come crashing down. 

I stopped running and allowed myself to fall to my knees. They hit the hard ground with a thud, the force went through my entire body, and I let out an involuntary cry as the tremors reached my broken left arm. 

Natsu was by my side in an instant, crouching in front of me. instinctively, I leaned back, trying to get away, but his hands same down on my shoulders holding me in place. 

“Don’t move.” he warned. 

I said nothing. This was the end. I braced myself for a final attack. A blow to the head perhaps, that seemed painless. 

Natsu’s hands disappeared, but I was traped all the same. I closed my eyes, waiting for death. But instead I felt fingers pulling at the strings behind my head, and slowly the heat of my mask came away. Now he knew without a doubt. 

“Violet?”


	21. TWENTY ONE

Violet and I have had many hard jobs, but the worst are the ones when I do nothing. The guild hall was full of life, just like always. No one had a clue what was happening outside the walls. And they wouldn't. Not until Violet came back alone. 

There was no way to be sure how long the job would take since we had no definitive number on how many thieves were in that building. So there was no way I could know how things were going. All I could do was wait. 

I sat at the bar for a while, eating and making small talk with Grey. but I didn’t go for more than a few seconds before glancing at the door. If this where a normal job I would have to be more careful to hide my worry, but as it was, I had every right to be apprehensive. Violet was out there alone. And then thought the others didn’t know it,he best case sanrio was that she would show up half dead and sobbing within the hour. Which understandably wasn’t something I was looking forward to. 

Nevertheless I tried to relax. I had to continue gathering intel. Just because Natsu would be dead by nightfall didn’t mean that the job was over. There were still four more targets, many of whom where a lot stronger. 

But for the most part I felt prepared. I’d been using my archive magic to watch footage from the grand magic games. I knew everyone’s fighting style. In every aspect but strength, Vi and I had the upper hand. So why was I so worried? 

“You good there August?” I looked up to find the Master was sitting next to me on the bar. I kept a straight face.

“Fine.” I mumbled, glancing again at the door.

The master chuckled. It made my skin crawl. “Worried about Violet I see.” he said.

“Yeah,” I nodded.

“She’ll be fine,” he assured me, “Natsu’s a good kid. He’ll keep her safe.” 

“Right.” I nodded. 

“And you’re a good kid to you know.” I looked up. Had I misheard him?

“For protecting Violet.” he said, “I’m glad she decided to share her magic with the guild.” 

I had almost forgotten about that, it seemed so irrelevant now. “Yeah me to,” I said, “it’s good for her...to not be alone.” 

The master nodded, “And what about you?” he asked.

“What about me?” I deadpanned.

The master leaned in close, “are you still hiding your magic from her?” 

I sighed, it was a good thing the master didn’t suspect us. He was too smart for his own good. “I told her.” I said. 

“Good,” the master nodded, “she deserves to know don’t you think?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Well,” the master stood up, “I won't keep you trapped here talking to an old man.”

“No its...I don’t-”

“Don’t worry about it,” the master smiled, “now go have some fun, take your mind off it.” 

“O-okay. Thank you sir.” 

The master nodded and then jumped down on the other side of the bar. I drained my cup and walked deeper into the hall. Talking with people who thought they were my friends. 

Some time passed, and thought I wasn’t completely at ease, I did relax a little. There was something about Fairy Tail that just felt...safe. No matter who you were. 

As the day wore on I knew it was only a matter of time before Violet appeared in the doorway. And even thought I would give anything to have her show up there immediately, I knew that with her arrival, a part of Fairy tail would die. And I didn’t necessarily mean Natsu. 

When she got back, this place would no longer have the happy go lucky feel that I had come accustomed to. It would be different. And I couldn't be sure that it would ever recover. So I tried to enjoy the time I had. Because soon, the guild as we knew it would come to an end. 

About the time I’d been expecting Violet to get back, the main door opened. I tensed, ready to see how bad her injuries where. But it was not Vi that came thought. It was Happy. And he was alone. 

Stone hands grabbed my heart and pulled it deep into my stomach as the cat flew through the guild hall. Many of the other fairies waved, asking about Natsu and Vi. but he ignored them all and flew straight to the bar, where the master was waiting. Grey was sitting nearby, and he moved in to hear Happy’s news. I watched all of their eyes widen. What had Happy seen? I had to get out. I had to go find Violet.

I stood up and started itching to the door, keeping an eye on the others. The Master saw me, and whispered something to Grey. I broke into a sprint, bursting out the doors and into the hot afternoon. 

But I was followed. Gray grabbed the back of my color, bringing me to a dead stop. He reached for my arms and held them against my back. I was traped. “I don’t want to make a scene,” he growled in my ear. “So if I were you, I would back back to Gramp’s office nice and slow.” 

I sighed. I didn’t really have a choice. I realized how stupid I was to run like that, there was no way to know what Happy told them. For all I knew he just saw Vi in the mask, and they had no idea what was really going on. Maybe I could still save us. 

I did as Grey asked and walked back into the guild hall. He let go of my arms when we passed through the door. But he stayed uncomfortably close. I knew better than to try anything. 

I had never been inside the master’s office before, but I knew where it was, and we slipped in unnoticed by the rest of the guild. The master was sitting sternly on the far side of the desk, and after shutting the door behind us, Grey threw me into one of the chairs across from him. 

“What did you do?” Grey yelled.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I said. 

“Don’t play dumb.” Grey got in my face. “Happy told us everything.”

I sighed, but stayed silent. Violet was still out there. For all I knew I was the only thing keeping her alive. So I said nothing.

“Well?” Grey asked. 

I looked at the floor. 

“If you don’t answer me August, I swear I’ll-”

The master raised his hand for silence, and Grey begrudgingly obeyed. 

I stared up at him, waiting for the hammer to drop. But he still looked as calm and collected as ever. Somehow that made me feel worse. 

“Happy had informed us that when on the job with Natsu and Violet, they were attacked but a masked man.” The Master told me. 

He waited for me to respond, but I kept a straight face and continued to stare at him, just like I’d been taught. 

“Happy informed us that the masked man took quite a beating, and that Natsu won the fight.”

I swallowed. Something must have gone wrong to have Vi up against Natsu in a straight up fight. I prayed she wasn’t dead. But under the circumstances that might be better. 

“Happy also told us that in the fight the man’s sleeve was ripped. And there was a guild mark on his left arm.”

So they did have proof it was her then.

“Do you know why that might be August?” The master asked.

I said nothing. There was nothing I could say that wouldn't make this worse. I set my jaw. 

“I’m sure that you think your silence his helping your cause,” the Master said, “but I can assure you, we can’t reach an agreement until you tell us what’s going on.” 

I said nothing. I didn’t trust these people. The best casesinario for Vi and I now was that they would turned us into the magic council before the rest of Justice Valkyrie came down to kill us all. 

I glanced at the door. Grey was standing behind my chair, I had no doubt that he could stop me if I tried to run. They hadn’t restrained me, but I was unsure of the master’s ability, and I knew I couldn't win against Grey in a proper fight. I was traped.

Grey noticed me watching him, looking at the door, “don’t even think about running.” He said, placing his hands together, preparing an attack. I slumped down in the chair. There was only one way out of this. Their way. 

“Why did you run in the first place?” The mater asked.

“Violet.” I said. 

The old man rested an eyebrow. I guess he gave me more credit than was due. I was more willing to talk than he thought. 

“Violet?” He repeated.

“She can’t win against Natsu,” I said, “I wanted to get to her before it was too late.”

“To late?” 

“It doesn't matter.” I said, “if Happy’s telling the truth, she’s probably already dead.” 

“Why would she be dead?” Grey asked.

Now I was the one that was confused, “she lost to him didn’t she?” I asked, “she-she…”

I looked down. I didn’t want to look weak in front of targets. I would have to face whatever fate they gave me. “Look,” I said, “I know how this goes, I’m going to have to repeat all this to the rune knights when you call the magic council. I’d rather save my breath.”

The master leaned forward in his chair, getting serious for the first time since Grey dragged me in. “I have no intention of calling the council today,” he said.

“You-what?”

“I have no idea why you are here,” the master said, “Who or what you are. I will not be calling anyone until I do.”

I looked at the ground. It looked like I would have to spill my guts after all. I glanced back at the door, wondering what was happening to Violet...if she wasn’t already gone.

“You’re not leaving until you tell us everything.” Grey said. 

I sighed. I was out of options. Out of time, if Violet was still alive, it would be better for her to return to the guild that understood what was going on. It was time to stop pretending. I squared my shoulders and sat up straight, the way I would is this where a debrief back at my real guild. “Violet and I are assassins from the dark guild Justice Valkyrie.” I said, “We were sent her on assignment to kill five members of this guild. Natsu Dragneel, Gajeel Redfox, Erza Scarlet, Laxus Dyer and Grey Fullbuster.” Out of the corner of my eye I saw Grey take a step back in disgust. 

“We have been here working undercover since the beginning,” I said, “Last night we moved on to the next part of our plan. Violet would ask Natsu to accompany her on a dangerous job, kill him and then return here, claiming that any injuries she sustained from the unknown attacker.” 

I didn’t need to be an empath like Violet to know that Grey was surprised and revolted. But I was more confused as to how the master felt. He didn’t seem afraid of me. Or angry either. I stared at him, daring him to react. But he didn’t get the chance.

There was a soft knock on the door, and with a nod from the master, Grey pulled it open. 

On the other side was a very pale looking Mira Jane. “Natsu and Violet are back,” she said, “I think you should come see them.” 

“I’ll be right there.” The master said, and Mira left.

The master stood and walked to the door. “Stay here.” He ordered, shutting the door behind him, and leaving me alone with Grey. 

~~~

*Violet’s POV*

(a few hours previously) 

I closed my eyes as Natsu reached behind my head and unfastened the mask. I didn’t want to see his reaction. But I could not stop from feeling it. 

The warm plastic was lifted away, and I felt Natsu’s anger melt into sorrow and confusion. I flinched, and inches away from him. Scooting backwards on my butt until my back hit a tree. 

Natsu hardly seemed to notice the movement. “Why?” He whispered.

I stared at the ground.

“Who did you do this?” He was so convinced it wasn’t me, he was so convinced I was his friend. 

I said nothing. I heard him shoot close to me, and I could see him sitting on the edge of my vision. He wanted me to look at him. I didn’t move.

“Who made you do this?” He asked again.

I stared at the useless arms in my lap. “No one,” I whispered.

Natsu wasn’t satisfied. 

“Stop lying.”

“I’m not.” 

Natsu reached down and placed his hand on mine, reading me. I flinched at the touch, but he didn’t let go.

“Who?” 

“No one.” 

He knew I was telling the truth, but now he was only more confused. 

I took a deep breath, my time of playing house with the fairy tail guild had come to an end. I had to face the consequences of my failure. I only hoped August could get away before they got him to. “We’re assassins.” I said, “August and I. We were playing you the whole time.” 

Natsu was still touching my hand, but I wished he’d let go. I didn’t want him to know about the growing pain in my chest. 

Natsu was dumbstruck, “So this whole time...you where…”

“Just go ahead and kill me.” I whispered.

“What?” Natsu leaned in, but I didn’t repeat myself. I knew the disgust he felt in him was for me. “Why would I do that?” he asked. So he had heard me then. 

“I lost.” I said. What was wrong? Why didn’t he just do it? Sure I had lost before. I’d lost many times before, but they were all back in the compound, back in the training grounds, the worse you could get for that was the whip. This was the real world. A proper mission. Why didn’t he just get it over with?

“I don’t know how you did it wherever you’re from,” Natsu said, “but that’s not how we do it here.” 

“Here?” 

“Fairy tail.” Natsu said it like this was obvious, like I was the strange one. 

“But….” I stopped myself before more words came out. If he wasn't going to kill me...then what was he going to do? Maybe take me back to the master, and then he would decide. And I would pull August down to...I began to cry harder.

“Why are you so scared?” Natsu asked. 

I looked down at our hands. He was still reading me. I pulled away, struggling not to cry out as I moved my broken arm. I moved backwards, slipping around the tree, putting as much distance between us as I could. “You shouldn't do that.” Natsu said, “you’ll get more hurt.” 

“I don’t care.” I spat. His aura spun, it was cloudy now. Sad?

“Well I do!” he countered. 

He stood up and walked toward me, I scooted back in vain. “Stop moving.” Natsu ordered. 

I didn’t lesson, I didn’t want to be near him. I didn’t want him to read me. My hand landed on a loose bit of dirt, and I fell backwards into the mud. I sensed Natsu standing over me, and shut my eyes, cowering beneath him. I heard him bend down, I raised my arms to protect my head, assuming he was going to strike me. 

But then warm arms wrapped around my quaking body. He was...hugging me? Some of the fear that I had gathered during the battle began to dissipate, replaced with Natsu’s calm. It was as though he was the empath, pushing me to relax. 

We stayed there for a long time, until Natsu finally released me. “I’m taking you back.” he said. 

I didn’t meet his eyes. I had expected as much. But I knew the guild master wasn't stupid enough to show this kind mercy. Whatever it was that waited for me in that guild was not something I was looking forward to, but it was better than what I had just faced, and even I had to admit I needed medical attention. 

I sighed. There weren’t any other options. Without my arms, standing would have been difficult. I looked around for the nearest tree and scooted towards it. By pushing against the tree I managed to stand, but I was still leaning on it for support. Natsu must have noticed, because he offered to carry me on his back. At first I declined, but he was stubborn, and I gave in. 

As the sun began to set over the tear soaked battlefield, I sank my face into Natsu’s scarf was we made our way towards Fairy Tail.


	22. TWENTY TWO

After the adrenaline from the battle wore away, the pain became greater than I could handle. Although I had not originally wanted Natsu’s help, I now saw that it truly was my only way back to the guild hall. If he had not been carrying me, then I was sure that I would have passed out before even leaving the woods.

Natsu did not speak as he walked. And I felt in him a kind of block, he was refusing to deal with the new emotions until we got back. Until the master had decided what to do with me. 

I stared at the back of Natsu’s neck. Even though he had been carrying me for nearly an hour already, the feeling of it still felt wrong. My clothes were torn in many places, allowing our skin to touch. I didn’t like being read in general, but to be forced to share my emotions for so long was starting to wear on my nerves. I wondered what he felt in me. Fear? Pain? I wished I could see into my own head the way he was just then. The way I saw into others’.

I wondered what August would do when we returned to the guild hall. Maybe he could get away, if I lied hard enough, he could have a chance to escape; to live a good life. Somewhere far away from both gilds

As we walked on I found myself beginning to slip in and out of consciousness. At first I fought it. To be so vulnerable in the hands of my enemy was not something I wanted to happen. But after awhile I realized that it wouldn't matter what I was awake or not when we got back to the guild hall. I was in no condition to fight back. Whatever the master desired, that would be my fate. I might as well have been a rag doll. 

“Hey,” Natsu called, bouncing me against his back, “Try to stay awake alright.” 

I groaned. Things were easier without a third party spying on my emotions.

“Don’t give me that.” Natsu said, reading me again, “I’d hate to see what August would do if you came back dead.” 

“He’d get over it.” I mumbled. He’d been trained to. 

Natsu’s stomach turned. “How can you say that?” he asked, “Isn’t he your brother? You would just leave him like that?” 

I sighed. At this point that would probably be better for him. 

“That’s not true.” Natsu said. 

Again I wished he couldn't read me. 

“We’re almost there. Just...hang on till then.” 

The idea of getting back to the guild hall made me want to throw up, but I didn’t argue. There was nothing I could do about it anyway. 

It wasn’t long before we passed Carida Cathedral, it was then that I began to shake. I didn’t want to go back there. They would send me to the council, or worse, back to Justice Valerie. I began to cry again. 

I knew Natsu must have noticed my break down, but he said nothing. He probably just didn’t want to deal with it. Not when he was so close to being rid of me. 

When we reached the guild hall Natsu kicked open the doors without hesitation. I pushed my face into his scarf and closed my eyes. I didn’t want to see how they reacted. But I knew there was nothing to stop me from feeling it. 

A moment before we entered I felt the happy go lucky atmosphere that I had grown to know. But once Natsu and I were thought the doors, it began to disappear. The talking stopped. I hear someone drop a cup; the shattering glass echoed through the hall. “Someone get the master!” Natsu yelled, “Tell him to meet us in the infirmary.”

As Natsu walked deeper into the guildhall questions began to fly.

“What happened?”

“Where they attacked?”

“Someone should tell August.”

“Where is August?” 

I felt a hand touch my back, but it did not feel my skin. I tried to focus enough magic energy to read the emotional signature, but I didn’t have enough to get an accurate reading. 

“She looks pretty bad.” 

I felt Natsu turn, facing the owner of the hand, “Wendy,” he sighed, “Can you help her?” 

“I can try.” she nodded. 

We entered the infirmary and Natsu shut the door behind us, muting the babble from the main hall. I wondered where August was. If he had seen me he would have followed us. Or maybe he knew what happened. Maybe he had already gotten away. 

With Wendy and Carla’s help, Natsu placed me in one of the beds. Although Natsu’s touch had been problematic for me, it was strange to be without it now. I felt utterly alone. 

I opened my eyes and rolled over in the bed, facing away from where I sensed the others were standing. 

“She’s awake?” Wendy asked.

“Last I checked.” Natsu said. 

I stared at the closed door, wondering if there was any chance of escape. 

“What happened to you two out there?” Carla asked. 

Natsu hesitated. “It’s a long story.”

“But-” she was cut off when the door opened. 

Master Makarov lingered in the doorway for a moment before walking into the room. He was staring right at me. Natsu quickly circled around the bed, coming between us, hidding me form the master’s icy gaze. 

“We need to talk.” Natsu said. 

“I imagine we do.” the master nodded.

The door opened yet again and Erza came through, “What the hell happened out there?” she asked, “Where is August? He needs to know about this.” she turned, perhaps to find him, but the master stopped her with a raise of his hand. 

“I’ll explain everything later.” he said, “But for now I need to speak with Natsu, alone. Could you...keep an eye on Violet?”

Erza raised an eyebrow, obviously not understanding. But I did. The master didn’t trust me to be here without a guard. But I didn’t blame him. I would have done the same. 

“Just...make sure no one comes in or out, okay?” the master asked. 

“If you say so,” Erza sighed, taking a seat on the bed next to mine. The master gave me one last look, a warning, and then he left with Natsu, shutting the door behind him. 

I could feel the confusion of the others in the room. I was the only one there that had a clue what was going on. 

Wendy walked over to my side of the bed, and I resisted the urge to turn away from her again. “First I’m just going to see how bad it is okay?” she asked. 

I nodded, and her hand came down on my forehead. I knew she could read me, but that wasn’t what she was worried about. She was looking only for physical wounds, and using her own magic to do so. And even if she was looking for my emotions, I doubted she would be able to piece together what happened without an explanation. And I wasn’t going to give her one. 

I didn’t want her wasting magic energy on me. Not after what I'd done. But even if I told her to stop I knew she wouldn't. That’s Fairy Tail for you...

Wendy moved around me, placing her gentle hands on parts of me that I had forgotten where injured.

Erza asked me what had happened, but I just shook my head as tears began to escape me again. Erza was anything but reassured, but she didn’t ask again. I didn’t say much of anything. I hoped they could write it off as shock or something of that caliber.

As Wendy worked, I did start to feel a little better, even if only physically. After a few warnings from Carla, Wendy finally stopped, and I was grateful for the healing she had done, however undeserved. 

With the help of Erza, Wendy found some pajama like hospital clothes, drawstring pants and a bubblegum pink button up. Even thought they would not be my first choice in color, I was grateful to be free of my destroyed stealth suit. 

Once I was changed, Wendy began to wrap bandages around my burned arm, and place the broken one in a sling. She said that even with healing, it would be a few days before I was well, and warned me to stay in bed. Just as Wendy finished with my bandages, the door opened again. Instantly I felt my resolve shatter. The Master and Natsu had returned. 

The Master’s lips were tight, and I didn’t have enough magic energy left to make an accurate guess as to why. “I would like to talk with Violet.” he said. 

Most of the others saw this as their cue to leave, and did so, leaving only Natsu. 

“You can go to Natsu.” the master ordered.

“But-”

“I’m sure Happy is eager to see you,” the master said, “and you both need rest. Go.” 

Natsu didn’t look happy about it, but he did as he was told, and left me alone. 

The master grabbed a chair from the corner and scooted it over to me before sitting in it casually. It was obvious this wasn’t going to be a short conversation.

“Natsu has told me what happened.” he said, “but I would like to hear your side of the story, from the beginning, if you don’t mind.” 

“It was just me.” I said immediately, “August had nothing to do with it.” 

The Master raised his eyebrows, clearly surprised, but then he shook his head, almost apologetically. “I can understand why you would want to protect August,” he said, “but he is sitting in my office after trying to run away when Happy came in earlier.” 

I cursed under my breath. So there was no chance of saving him then. What now? I debated whether or not to lie. I could just say nothing. That’s what Takashi had taught me to do. What had August done? I knew they would compare my story to his. If I lied, surely something would give it away, I had no idea what they already knew. 

“I don’t want to talk.” I decided. 

“Your brother tried the silent treatment as well.” the master said, “Is that what they told you to do? Back at Justice Valkyrie?”

I swallowed, so he did get August to talk after all. 

“I understand your hesitation to share.” the master said. “But I’m sure you understand why I need to know the whole truth.” 

I took a deep breath. If August had decided to talk, then I would follow his lead. “I don’t know what August told you. But we are assassins from Justice Valkyrie. We were sent here to eliminate five targets.”

The master nodded, he had heard this part before, but I had to tell it again, to prove August was right. And so I told him everything. Every detail since August and I boarded the train to Magnolia. I told him about our plan, and Takashi, and then how scared I had been when he’d first pulled me into his office. At first the words came slow, spastically. Debriefs where no stranger to me, but I knew this was different, even if I didn’t want it to be. The names I mentioned now weren’t just targets to this man. They were faces, family. People he loved. And yet as I told him of our plans to kill them he remained perfectly calm. 

When I got to the part of the story when August told Justice Valkyrie’s policy for failed missions, I’d expected the master to react. But his expression didn’t change, and I didn’t have the strength to properly read him. I didn’t understand.

After describing our plan to kill Natsu I stopped talking. I wasn’t ready to relive the events in the forest quite yet. I was afraid that I would have no other choice. But the master nodded, seemingly satisfied with what I had already disclosed. 

“We both know how it ends.” he said. 

I waited for him to call in and report us to the magic council, or throw me out of the guild hall into the street. But he did neither. 

He stood from his chair and walked to my bed, placing his hand gently on mine, reading me, “has everything that you told me tonight been entirely truthful.” 

I took a deep breath. If I lied now he would sense it. 

“Yes.” 

He nodded, stepping back. 

“What are you going to do with us?” I asked, not sure I wanted to know the answer. 

“Normally anyone who has hurt another member is kicked out immediately.” the master said, “but under the-”

“So not August then?” I asked hopefully. 

The master smiled. “You have a good heart Violet. I will not be kicking anyone out tonight.” and then he walked out of the infirmary, ending the conversation. 

I sighed, hoping to enjoy some time alone, but the master had hardly been gone a moment then the door opened again and Natsu and Erza stepped thought. Erza was staring at me strangely. I rolled over, not wanting to look at them. 

“So you told her?” I asked Natsu, staring at the wall. 

“Gramps told me to.” he said. He seemed to be using this as some kind of justification, but I didn’t really care either way. I heard the door open and Wendy ran to my side of the bed. She was carrying a tray of ice and a bottle of pills. 

“For your arm.” she held up the tray.

“Thanks.” I rolled onto my back and Wendy set the tray down so that my arm could lie in it comfortably. I had to admit it did make me feel better. Wendy then prepared a glass of water, and Erza moved in, helping my sit up to take the pills. I noticed that Natsu stayed where he was, watching us from the conner. 

“These pills will help you sleep.” Wendy said. 

“You mean they’ll knock me out?” I asked. 

“Well...not exactly…” 

“I don’t want them.” I said. I’d had pills like those before. I knew they would give me nightmares. “I want to be able to wake up when I want.” 

Wendy glanced at Erza, asking for help. 

“You’ll be fine,” Erza said soothingly, “You need rest to heal.” 

“I can manage without.” 

Erza gave me a pointed look. Even without silver tongue, the message was clear. If I didn’t take the pills willingly, she was going to force them down my throat. I sighed and grabbed the cup from Wendy. I felt the smooth capsules side down my throat. No going back now. 

“It’s late,” Wendy said, “Get some rest, and we’ll be here when you wake.” 

I nodded, already feeling the pill’s effects weighing me down. Whether I liked it or not, tomorrow would be a new day.


	23. TWENTY THREE

*August's POV*

I sat in silence after the Master left the office. If I wanted to get away, this might be the best chance I had. On the other hand, I had no idea what state Violet was in. and there was no way in hell I was leaving without her. 

After sometime, Grey must have gotten tired of standing at the door, because he pulled a chair over and sat instead. I watched him slightly for several minutes before he spoke. I guess it made him uncomfortable.

“You’re not going to try anything are you?” he asked.

I considered the question before answering, “Not at the moment.” I said. 

Grey seemed unsatisfied, “How do I know that’s the truth?” he asked.

“I guess you don’t.” I shrugged. 

We were silent for a while longer before Grey spoke again. “You sound different.” 

I turned to face him, “What do you mean.” 

“You sound different.” Grey repeated, not meeting my gaze.

I shrugged and turned back to the master’s cluttered desk, “This is how I’ve always sounded. You just don’t know me.” 

Despite my fear of the council, and for Violet, there was something about the truth that was comforting. Not for Fairy Tail's sake, or for mine, as I had no guilty conscious but...it was a lot of work to keep up a facade, and I felt better now that it was gone. 

“Can I ask you something?” Grey asked.

“I may not answer.”

“Surely you knew that Natsu is stronger than Violet.” he said, “Why did you let her go?” 

I swallowed. I could have explained that we had a plan, or yelled that I knew her strength better than he ever could. But neither one was the truth. “I don’t wanna explain it twice.” I lied, “I’ll tell you when the Master gets back.” 

Grey didn’t ask me anything else after that, and I didn’t say anything to him either. After four hours had passed, and it was nearly two in the morning, the door opened and the master returned. 

He ordered Grey to leave the room, but I didn’t move. I knew I was no match for him, bodyguard or no. 

“I just spoke with Violet.” the master informed me once the door was again closed. 

“She’s alright?” I blurted.

“There is no permanent damage,” The master nodded.

I took in a sigh of relief. So she wasn’t dead at least. But that meant...she would have to suffer the consequences of our failure. 

“I know that the two of you are very close to each other.” the master continued, “and I would assume that your silence earlier was to keep her safe. But now that she is back, I would ask that you tell me everything.” 

I stared at him. I would hardly consider this safe...but then again, if he had spent that long talking to her, she must have shared quite a lot. And I knew Violet wouldn’t be in any state to form a decent lie. So the best I could do for her now was confirm her story.

“Fine.” I said, “but after that, I want to see her.” 

The master considered my request, and then nodded, “it’s a deal.” he said.

And so I told him everything. A small bit about the compound, and then about the mission to Fairy Tail. I mentioned Takeshi's threat the night before, and how the plan to kill Natsu had been rushed at best. The master lessened intently, but his face gave nothing away. Once I finished, he nodded.

“That matches that Violet said.” 

I nodded. At least I’d gotten that right. 

“And I know this wasn’t in the original deal,” he added, “but would you answer one more question for me?” 

“What is it?” I asked suspiciously.

“How long has it been since you truly understood what it meant to kill?” 

I swallowed. “Did you ask Vi that?” 

“No.” 

“Good.” I said. 

“And why is that?” he asked. 

“Because I don’t think she’s figured it out yet. What it means to kill I mean.” 

The master seemed confused, “but I was under the impression that she did not want to kill Natsu.” 

“That’s true.” I said, “but…” I struggled for words. Violet just didn’t want to kill the Fairies because they had become her friends. She didn’t bat an eye when she went on that other job with Takashi. She still didn’t completely understand what she was doing. And I didn’t want her to find out either. Because once she did...she would never forgive herself. “She doesn't understand yet.” I said. 

Whether it was because of my archive magic, or just a general proficiency for listening at closed doors, I had long since learned what the outside world really thought of assassins. Every life I took, it was all to protect Violet. There was no other way. And Fairy Tail was no different. Or at least it hadn’t been...

“Why haven’t you told her?” the master asked, interrupting my thoughts. 

It took me awhile to answer. It seemed so obvious to me. Why burden Violet with the truth when the lies of Justice valkyrie where so much easier to swallow. I dodged the question. 

“Would you?” 

He didn’t answer. 

“Are you going to tell her now?” 

This time I said nothing. I didn’t want to see the day when she learned of all the horrible things she’d done. But now...she was going to find out sooner or later. “I don’t think it’s something that can be told,” I admitted, “I think I’ll just have to wait until she finds out herself.” 

The Master nodded. I glance at the clock told me it was nearly five in the morning. A new question burned in my head. I was afraid of the answer, but I asked anyway, “Will you take me to see her soon?”

The master blinked, seeming to snap out of a haze. “Yes of course,” he nodded. He stood and opened the door to the office. I followed carefully. The guild hall was not yet officially open, so the usual babble of people was gone. It was kind of creepy. 

The master led me into the infirmary, where Violet was sleeping on a nearby bed. She wore a pair of pajamas that were not her own, and one arm was in a sling. The other was resting in a tray of ice. 

Erza stood near the door, keeping guard. Lucy was at Violet’s bed side, brushing out her long brown hair. Both of them were wearing different clothes than yesterday. I assumed they must have gone home to sleep then returned early.

The master stepped aside, and when Lucy saw me she shrank away. I guessed that meant someone had told her. I stepped closer to the bed, and Lucy looked more uncomfortable. Nervous perhaps. 

“What are you doing?” I kept my voice even. I didn’t want her to be afraid.

“I was just brushing her hair.” Lucy said, looking down, “It’s annoying to wake up with it so matted.” 

“I wouldn't know.” I sighed, trying to keep things light. 

Lucy didn’t seem to know how to react. For a moment I wished I could see into her mind the way Violet would. But I did not want the other things that I knew came with a silver tongue. 

I pulled over a chair and sat by the bed, watching Violet, but I did not touch her, I did not want her to wake. And also...I didn’t want to know what she was feeling, lest I begin to feel it myself. I had to keep my head. For the both of us. 

Lucy got up and went to talk to Ezra and the master in hushed voices, but I paid them no attention. I noticed Violet’s slightly open mouth, and the deep, soft breath that ran through it. Her injuries, though painful, would not cause her any permanent damage, at least, not the ones that I could see. 

I assumed that Wendy had been in to heal her by now. But how much had she done? How long before Vi would be back on her feet? If it was soon perhaps we could make a run for it. I knew enough to make us disappear. With a little luck we could escape Justice Valkyrie, but there was another guild I had to worry about now. Would they let us go?

As soon as Takashi found out about what happened, he would begin plans to attack us, as well as the rest of Fairy Tail. Even if we did run...would we be able to escape him? 

Another option slowly creeped into my head. I had already mentioned to the master that it was possible Justice Valkyrie would launch an attack. And he had seemed unconcerned. 

I knew that Fairy Tail had a bit of a reputation of taking out dark guilds. If they went up against Justice Valkyrie, I believed there was a chance that they could win. Especially if they had me feeding them inside information. 

I had considered leaving the guild several times before, just talking Violet and running. But my plans had always hated when I realized that our guild would stop at nothing to track us down. But if they were out of the picture… it was possible that Violet and I had a chance of getting away. 

If I could convince Fairy Tail to fight...then Violet and I could leave after the war, and start a new life together once it was all over. For the first time ever, we could be truly free. All I had to do was convince the master that it was a good idea.

I felt a presence at my side and turned to see the master watching Violet. “Take as much time as you like,” he said without looking at me. “I’m having a mattress moved into my office, and you may sleep there once you are done. I’m sure you understand why I can not leave you unattended.”

“Yes.” I said. I’d been expecting as much. But a part of me had hoped that they would let me stay in the infirmary with Violet. It had been strange not hearing her breathing on the other side of the room since this job started. But there was nothing I could do about it now. 

I watched Violet awhile longer, wondering what she must have gone thought in those woods. The master watched with me, silent and solemn. If I didn’t know any better I would say he was also upset by this. But I knew he must side with Natsu, who was a proper member of the guild. 

After some time I stood and placed a kiss on Violet’s forehead. “I’ll be back,” I promised. Then I turned to the master and allowed him to lead me to my prison in his office.

When I woke, I would tell warn him of Takashi and the others. I would act as thought I was helping him, giving him the information that he needed to fight Justice Valkyrie. And then when it was all over… we would leave whatever was left behind. It didn’t matter to me what guild mark I bore. It had always been Violet and I. The two of us against the world. And that’s how it was going to stay.


	24. TWENTY FOUR

*Violet's POV*

I dreamed that I was back in those woods. Fire was coming at me from all sides. And no matter what I tried, I couldn't avoid it all. The dark trees were like hateful onlookers, judges sentencing me to death. But thought the fire I noticed someone else watching me. 

“Who’s there?” I called.

There was no answer, but the shadowy figure took a step forward. 

“Show yourself”

The figure moved closer, and as a ball of fire skidded past I saw that it was the commander. The master of Justice Valkyrie. He stared at me and lifted his hand, and all the trees began to circle around me, tighter and tighter until they blocked out the light. Until I couldn't breath. 

“Stop!” I pulled away, but there was no escape. I was going to die here. 

“Stop!” 

I opened my eyes and sat up from my bed in the infirmary. I was covered in sweat. 

“Violet?” I glanced to my left. Lucy was standing there, she was afraid. 

I stared at her, unsure what to do, then I felt hands on my back. I turned to my right to find Erza trying to guide me back into the bed. I made an attempt to pull away from her, but it was useless. 

“None of that.” She said, pushing me back into the soft mattress, “You need to heal.” 

I was aware of the bandages still wrapped around various parts of my body, but the pain was nothing compared to before. The emotional state of the two girls in the room gave me enough to assume that they knew I was a killer, but they didn’t see me as a threat. Not at the moment at least. 

I needed more information about what was going on. 

“How long have I been out?” I asked.

“A few days.” Lucy said.

Days? I felt like sobbing, “Where is August?”

“calm down.” Erza said, “Lucy can you go tell the master that she’s awake.”

Lucy nodded and left the room.

“Where is he?” I asked, feeling panic flare up again. 

Erza placed a hand on my arm, reading me. “relax.”

I pulled away. I didn't want to be read. I wanted to get out. To find August. I scanned the room, trying to look for something that could help me escape. But I knew there was no way to get away from Erza. I was still trapped. I tried to take long deep breaths, relax like Erza wanted. I had to keep my head.

A few minutes later the door opened and the master stepped in. He looked like he hadn't slept in days. “Where is August?” I asked.

The master glanced at Erza, exchanging some kind of private conversation. Both were tense.

“Where is he?”

“He is safe.” Said the master. 

I sighed, thought he had yet to answer my question. 

“He has been helping us understand the nature of your past guild.” 

They where both watching me, trying to understand how I would react, but I couldn’t tell what they were expecting. “I want to see him.” I said. 

“That can be arranged.” Said the master, “but first, I would like to be sure that the two of you aren’t going to try anything.” 

“Like what?” I asked curiously.

“Perhaps plan another attack.” The master said, “or more likely an escape.” 

I sighed. That’s exactly what I’d been looking to do. 

“What do I have to do to prove that?” I asked.

“I don’t know yet.” The master said, “but in the meantime there is someone who would like to talk to you.”

“Who’s that?” I asked, genuinely confused. Who would want to talk to me. Other than August, there wasn’t anyone here who I hadn’t tried to destroy. And the master had already forbid me from seeing him. 

The master didn’t answer, simply walked out of the room, talking Erza with him. But before the door even closed behind him, someone else entered. 

I swallowed my fear. It was Natsu. 

*August's POV*

The first night in the guild hall had been rough. The master had attempted to make my cage in his office comfortable, but it was a prison all the same. I tried to take comfort in the fact that Violet was nearby, but I knew she was still too far to reach, even thought she was sleeping peacefully in the next room over. 

With Violet down for the count, I knew it was up to me to figure out how we would proceed. Defeating Fairy Tail as planned was out of the question, for the master had no doubt warned all of that targets, and thought I had not yet been made aware that he told the others, rumors travel fast. Killing them now was impossible. 

Takashi had threatened to tell the commander that our job had gone south, but he gave himself more credit than he was due. We still had some time before Justice Valkyrie really found out that we’d failed. But what to do with that time?

The way I saw it we had two options. Run or stay. If we ran we could avoid the hate from Fairy Tail, but we would have to get away. It would still be a few days before Violet could hit the road, and I seriously doubted that they would take their eyes of us for long enough to make a plan. And even if we did get away, the dragon slayers could definitely track us down.

That left me with one option. To stay with the Guild, try to earn their trust back, for real this time. I got the feeling that the master wanted to turn us into some kind of charity case, and the better part of the members were quicker to forgive than I thought they should be, so that might be our best option.

Justice Valkyrie would find us, and then it would be an all out war. That was inevitable now. But once the two guilds had destroyed each other, then it would finally be safe for Violet and I to leave them both behind. 

I told myself that I could sleep on it. I would have to wait until morning to start moving in either direction anyway. 

~~~

I was awakened late in the day when the master walked into his office. I could tell he wanted to talk. But I had a request. 

“Can I see Violet?” 

The master nodded and escorted me to the infirmary. Now that it was late evening, the guild hall was full, like I was used to. But when they saw me, the cheerful chatter was replaced with whispers. I guessed it was something that I would have to get used to. 

When I reached in infirmary, everything was about the same as wen I’d left it. This time it was Grey guarding the door. I ignored him and sat in the chair that was still waiting at Violet's bed side. 

She was still sleeping peacefully, in the same position as when I last saw her. 

“What should I do?” I wanted to ask. “What do you want?” 

I knew she’d loved Fairy Tail before...and despite the events of yesterday she had made many friends here. The only friends she’d ever had, excluding myself. I sighed. She would want to stay. 

I turned to the master. “We need to talk.” I said. 

“I imagine we do.” 

“The first thing that I need to know is whether or not you’re going to kick us out.” I said. 

The master signed. “Usually the rules are fixed,” he said, “but these are...special circumstances. I will let you stay.”

“Thank you I-”

“But you will do as I say. You are in my debt”

“I know sir.” 

The master nodded, satisfied. And now I knew that it was possible for us to stay here. Not I had to see if my plan would work. I took a deep breath. 

“But our old guild...Justice Valkyrie....when they find out we failed, it’s not going to be petty. They will come.”

“I expected as much.” the master said, “and I hope that since you intend to stay you will be here to help us prevent a war.”

“Yes sir.” 

“Then that’s what you shall do.” 

“I’ll make you a report right now.” I nodded, walking back to his office. I knew that reports were not something that happened in this guild, but if Violet and were going to survive, I needed to tell them everything. I had been paying soldier my whole life. Nothing had changed no except the master I reported to. I would tell them all I could, make sure that Justice Valkyrie was destroyed, no matter the cost. 

Only then could Violet and I be safe.


	25. TWENTY FIVE

*Violet's POV*

The master left me alone when Natsu entered the room. I guess they assumed that if I tried anything he could handle it himself. I got myself into a sitting position, leaning against the headboard. Once this was achieved, I stared into my lap. 

Sensing my movement was over, Natsu walked closer and pulled up a chair. He said nothing. I used silver tongue to tell he wasn’t sure what to do. He felt guilty, and betrayed as well. Conflicted. 

He had intended to start the conversation, but now I knew that he was unable. I had experienced it enough times myself to know the feeling. I didn’t know what I could do to help him. Our fight had been my fault of course. And I didn’t blame him for what happened, considering I could have revealed myself earlier, pulling the plug is things got bad. 

Of course I never would have. I had been prepared to die there. And once the fight proper had started, I had all but expected it. But Natsu didn’t know this, so his guilt confused me. 

“I didn’t want to.” The words came unbidden. My hand shot up to cover my mouth on instinct, but the movement distuerebed my injury, and I eased it back down before Natsu could notice. 

“I thought you were my friend.” he wasn’t looking at me, but I didn’t dare turn to him just in case. 

I had already answered him once, so the silent treatment won't work this time. I had to convince him to leave me along with more direct means. 

“I’ve never had a friend.” I said coldly. The admission made something twist deep in my stomach, but I tried not to think about it. 

“What about August?” Natsu asked looking up. 

I thanked my lucky stars that I’d had the sense to keep my eyes away from him as I prepared my answer. 

“Family.” I said. There was no other way to describe what August was to me. Besides, he was in the same boat as me now, nothing like Natsu. Nothing like anyone else in the guild.

“You must have known you would lose.” Natsu said, “Why did you do something so stupid?”

“I had a plan.” I said. I wanted to leave it at that, but my lips kept moving, as if my heart was controlling them rather than my brain, “but one of the thieves, he gave me a little more fear than I bargained for and then...it all went wrong.” 

“August told us that they’ll come for you.” Natsu said. “He’s been helping Gramps get ready for when they do.”

This was news to me, but I tried not to let my reaction show. So Augest wanted to help Fairy Tail after all. That meat we could stay. It also meant we didn’t have a good excuse to leave. 

“Why didn’t you leave me there?” I again the question slipped through my lips before I had the chance to check it’s safety. I had to end this conversation quickly before I let anything else slip. 

Natsu leaned back, surprised, “if I didn’t take you back here you would have died.” he said this like it was a good explanation.

I stared out the window, wishing I had said nothing. “I know.” 

Natsu was confused, but not because he didn’t understand what I meant. “You would rather die than be here?” he asked.

“I lost.” I said, “Your mercy was...unexpected.”

Natsu signed. “Well you better get used to it because-”

He was interrupted when the door opened. “Vi?”

I turned to find August standing in the doorway and immediately relaxed. He rushed forward and wrapped his arms around my shoulders. I had not known August to be a hugger, but I felt safe in his embrace. 

The master appeared in the doorway. “I should have known you’d come here.” he sighed, but I knew he wasn’t angry. I could tell he had grown fond of August in the days that I’d been out. But I was still unsure of his feelings towards me. 

“You should have told me she was awake.” August said he’d release me from the hug and stood between me and the others, his hand still holding mine. 

The master said nothing, but August didn’t seem to care, he turned back to me. “Are you okay?” he asked.

I nodded, glancing at Natsu who had receded to the back wall, “I’m fine.” I said. 

August smiled, “Wendy got you healed up good, and soon you’ll be out of here.” 

I noticed that he was still using the voice that had been part of his cover at Fairy Tail. it was to light, used too much slang for the real August. What was he playing out. A quick read of him revealed nothing. He seemed normal. I figured the best I could do for now was to play along. 

“They’re letting us go?” I asked, glancing back toward the master.

“Not exactly.” August agmited, “I’ve been telling them everything they need to know about Justice Valkyrie, and they trust me again but you’re…”

“Still a loose cannon.” I said.

“Yeah…” August said, “So we can’t go back to the apartment, not to mention Takashi knows he can find us there, but Lucy’s offered to let you stay at her place, then the others will meet you there latter tonight.”

I relaxed when I heard that August was coming to. I didn’t want to be separated, but it was in Fairy Tail’s best interest to keep us apart...at least until they knew where my loyalties lie. That must be why we wouldn't be alone. This leads into my next question, “others?” 

August nodded, “I haven’t been left alone all this time. I don’t think they’ll change that now. As far as I’ve heard, Lucy and Erza will go with you as soon as you get changed, then Grey Natsu and I will come tonight.” 

Two bodyguards each. Now that was a bit excessive. 

There was a silence, and then, “this is for you.” August was holding some kind of bracelet. I noticed for the first time that he was wearing an identical one. 

“What is it?” I asked.

“Lacrama.” August explained, reaching for my less injured arm, “it keeps us from leaving the guild hall.” he said, “unless we’re with another member of course.”

“Smart,” I sighed, watching as August fitted the band around my wrist. As I looked down I realized that another magic bracelet was missing, the one meant to be hiding my true guild mark. Intuitively I looked up at my upper left arm, but it was covered in bandages, hiding the mark of my true guild. I imagined it burning there, reminding me of my transgressions. 

I looked up to August. The Fairy Tail guild mark stood out clear as day on his neck. I knew that mine was also covered in bandages, so I didn’t bother to look. I knew that August's guild mark for Justice Valkyrie had been in the same place as mine. His upper arm. I noticed now that it should have been peeking out from under his shirt. But his concealing bracelet was missing too so…

I realised that August had noticed my silence, but I didn’t care. I reached up to his arm and pushed the sleeve back. Instead of the dark blue outline of swords and wings, I saw a pale white scar depicting the same image. 

“Oh,” August sighed, “Yeah I got rid of it.” 

“I didn’t know you could do that.” 

The mark was what bound us to the guild. It’s what we used to prove who we were. And it was...gone? Just like that? 

“It wasn’t easy,” August said, “but the master helped me find a spell. nothing I can do about the scar but I-”

He continued talking but I wasn’t listening anymore. I thought that his light hearted tone meant that he was planning something. But if his guild mark was gone then...what was he playing at?

I moved to pull his sleeve back into place, accidentally brushing his arm with my hand in the process. 

“You’re upset.” August said. 

I pulled my hand away quickly. “It’s fine.” 

I knew that August usually let things like this go, allowing me to lie. But this time he didn’t. He reached for my hand again, reading me. 

“You’re... sad?” he said, condentrating. He wasn’t used to this. “It’s like you’ve lost something.” he took his and away and looked at me. “Why?” 

I didn’t know. Justice Vacary hadn't been the best place to be. But they had taken us in. they had fed and clothed us. And now they were nothing to him. Just a little scar, nothing special when both of us had so many. But I knew that we could never go back. And it was my fault for not killing Natsu. If I had just done it...none of this would have happened. 

Of course, I keep this to myself, but I wasn’t sure August was going to let it go. Lucky I was spared from integration then the master stepped forward and cleared his throat. 

August pulled away from me immediately. “I have to go.” he said, “but you’ll be safe a Lucy’s. I’ll see you again soon.” 

I didn’t want him to go, but there was nothing I could do to stop it, so I could only watch as he walked out of the room, leaving me alone with Natsu and the master. 

Natsu was staring at me, but I looked away. I had no desire to continue our conversation, and he didn’t seem to know what to say to me either. I prayed he would just leave. 

Out of the corner of my eye I saw the master say something to Natsu, who grunted and then left the room. 

“I’ve sent him to fetch Wendy.” the master explained, “she’s been working hard to heal you these past few days, so be sure to thank her.” 

I nodded, not looking up at him.

“Then you can head over to Lucy’s. Erza will be joining you to, and I’m sure you can guess why.” 

Another nod. August had said as much. 

The master looked over me, I sensed he was waiting for me to speak. When I didn’t, he let out a little sigh. “And I thought your brother was hard to talk to,” I heard him mumble.

Before I could help myself, my head turned to face him, and he smiled when he saw me. “Lighten up,” he said, “the worst can be behind you, if you leave it there.” 

I opened and closed my mouth several times, not sure what to say, which only seemed to amuse the old man. 

A moment later there was a tap at the door, and then Wendy came in, followed by Grey, who looked like he had been standing at the door. I assumed he was only there as a guard. 

“That’s my cue to leave.” the master said, walking back to the door. “But I’ll be seeing you.” 

And then he was gone.


	26. TWENTY SIX

*Violet's POV*

Wendy spent some time going over my inquiries, and I spent the time assuring her that I was fine. I could still feel pain coming from many parts of my body, and the itch of the burn on my arm was particularly hard to ignore, but it was nothing compared to what it had been when Natsu first brought me back to the guild hall. Besides, injuries where nothing new to me. I was good at hiding the pain, it was a requirement at Justice Valkyrie. Never let them know you’re hurting. Never let them know you’re weak. 

Once Wendy was done, I thanked her again. Despite hoping that she would leave as soon as humanly possible, I wanted to take time to show her how grateful I was. She acted as though it was nothing. As thought I was entitled to the help she gave me. It made my stomach twist. 

Wendy rushed out of the room, and Grey replaced her. I assumed that he had been standing guard outside all this time. I felt become weary of me as soon as he entered the room, perhaps he was expecting me to attack him. But that wasn’t the only emotion I felt. There was something else there too, some kind of...curiosity? 

I tilted my head, trying to get a better read on him, but he was still all the way across the room. I focused as hard as I could, trying to dig out a better description for the latent emotion. It wasn’t until I met his eyes that I realized I had turned to look at him. And of course he was staring at me. 

I returned my gaze to my lap quickly, not wanting him to think that I was trying to start anything. I felt the latent feeling spike; he was preparing to ask me a question, but he didn’t have time to act on it before the door opened again. The sound made me jump. 

This time it was Erza. I had grown accustomed to her aura, even soothed by it, thought I knew that her feelings for me would be much different now than they had been before…

“It’s good to see you awake.” Erza said. 

Her words were kind, but her tone did not reflect the sentiment. 

I swallowed. Before I had been so upset that my enemies were acting like my friends. And now they were acting like they should, but I still didn’t like it. The grass is always greener on the other side.

I heard Erza’s footstep come closer to my bed, until her body cast a shadow over the pale yellow covers. Still I did not look up. I wasn’t sure yet why she was there. Had she been sent as an ambassador of sorts? I had spent a fair amount of time with her before everything went wrong. 

Or maybe she was just there to escort me to Lucy’s. You had to be a special kind of stupid to try anything when Erza was around. Even I knew that. 

“The master said he already told you,” Erza continued, “but you’ll be staying at Lucy's house for a while.” 

“He told me.” I said, still not looking up. 

I felt her aura shift. Was she...annoyed with me? 

“If you’re ready we can leave now.” Erza said. It wasn’t a request. 

“Okay.” 

I took a deep breath and then turned away from Erza, swinging my legs over the opposite side of the bed. I hadn’t tried walking in a while, so I stood slowly. My legs had not been partially damaged in the fight, but the pain in my stomach was more than enough to make up for it, and lying in the infirmary for days on end had done nothing to help my dexterity. 

I gripped the edge of the bedside table as I took a few steps, testing out my balance. I felt Erza’s emotions change behind me, for a moment I thought she might be feeling guilty, but when I focused more I realized it was concern. I focused on her as I tested my legs. I felt her worry grow and boil over, she had made a choice. 

Without looking, I knew that she was by my side. 

“I don’t need help.” 

I turned just enough to find Erza’s hand hovering in the air next to me. I was glad I had been paying enough attention to stop her before she touched me. 

“I don’t need help.” I repeated, and her hand fell away slowly. 

I took a long breath before releasing my grip on the bedside table. I stepped farther out into the infirmary, I seemed stable enough. Erza did not offer me her hand again, but I noticed that she was standing closer to me than should have been normal, as if she was ready for me to hit the floor at any moment. 

If I had been a normal person that might have been true, but as it was, I was perfectly capable of walking on my own. At Justice Valkyrie there was no time for healing and rest between jobs or training exercises. I could handle myself. 

But as I walked toward the door I remembered that I would have to go thought the guild hall to make it outside. That was a little harder to face. 

By now all of them would know what I’d done. All of them would hate me. I used my silver tongue to reach out beyond the door. I could feel them all waiting on the other side. But there was an underlying feeling beneath the happy-go-lucky atmosphere that I was accustomed too. A danger that I had guessed at before was now on a more open display. 

It was a kind of righteous anger that I was familiar with. I had felt it before in the higher ranking members of Justice Valkyrie. I had felt it myself when I killed. It was the kind of emotion that I’d thought was indisputable, a dark kind of aching deep in the heart. 

But I didn't think that I would ever feel it in a place like Fairy Tail. But then again, this was a guild that called their vanquished foes back to the guild hall as trophies rather than allowing them to die with honor. Perhaps it did make sense for them to feel that pride. 

My feet only carried for me as far as the door to the infirmary. For on the other side was the enemy. I believed that now even more than when I had been planning to kill them. 

I heard Erza shuffling behind me, felt her concussion flicker to understanding, but I could not force my hand to reach the door knob. Who would be guarding me from the other side? Would it be Grey who I had lied to? Or Natsu who I had betrayed? Or would it be someone else entirely, who had not interacted with me enough to be confused by my actions. 

“Violet?” Erza was closer to me than ever. 

I shook my head, making my hair fall from my shoulder to shield my face from her. 

“No one out there will hurt you.” Erza assured me. 

She misunderstood my fear. But I was in no condition to correct her. 

“I can go first.” she offered, “then you’ll only have to look at me as you follow behind.” 

I nodded slowly, and stepped back, keeping my eyes on the floor. How could I allow her to do this for me? How weak was I? I heard the door open in front of me, and took a deep breath, I had no choice but to follow.

*August's POV*

I sat alone in the master’s office, going through old files with my archive magic. We had to be prepared for when Justice Valkyrie attacked. It was the only way that Vi and I could be safe. The only way that I could make up for my own stupidity. 

I should have taken Violet and ran the night that Takashi came to visit. We could have left the region, even the country, and lived out the rest of our days in peace. Now, this was the only way that the two of us where going to escape. I had to do it. 

Already the Fairies’ kindness had been more than I’d expected. At first I was wary of it, but now that Violet was awake, I was praying that they would be as tolerant with her as they had been with me. If her social issues hadn’t been obvious to them before, they would be now. I knew that Violet was strong, and I trusted Lucy to be gentle with her until I could meet up with them again. She would be safe. 

Until now, I had been eagerly awaiting Violet's awakening. But now that it had happened I wasn’t sure how I felt. I still wasn’t sure where she stood in all this, and there wasn’t a good chance to ask her with the master breathing down my neck every second of the day. 

What if she didn’t like my plan? What if she didn’t trust the Fairies enough to think it would work?

Most of the guild had found out about what we where by now. No one had really talked to me about it, but I saw the way they looked at me, the way they stopped talking when I entered a room. 

A part of me wondered if perhaps the constant watch of the master wasn’t out of fear that I would betray them, but something else. Luckily, I didn’t see much of the same hostility toward Violet. 

Granted, she had been unconscious for most of it, but the few times that I’d seen members interact with her, they had done so gently, kindly even. The same treatment wasn’t given to me. I assumed that most of the members were just too good natured to hate someone who had been so badly injured, regardless of context. But I felt like they blamed me for her state, rather than the man who gave her the burns. 

Natsu had done his best to avoid me. Thought, the same was true for the rest of the guild. During the brief times when I was let out of the master’s office, I could feel him watching me, but he never tried to say anything. I wondered if he was afraid of me. Whatever the reason, he kept his distance, and I was better for it. Despite the strangeness of it all, everyone acted about the same as I’d expected they would given the circumstances, everyone accept master Makarov. 

He was the only one who seemed more wary of Violet then of me. I understood that he had spent more time watching me, where as the only reason he had trusted Violet was because her story backed up mine. 

He asked me a lot of questions about her, “how long has she been in Justice Valkyrie?” “Does she have any friends there?” “How many lives has she taken?” 

He was careful not to dig too far into each one at once, but I could tell that he wanted to know more about her. I wasn’t sure what to do. I had proved my own loyalty when I removed my Justice Valkyrie guild mark, but I couldn't say anything to protect Violet. 

I knew that she wouldn’t want to spend time away from me after she woke. And I hated that she would have to, but I need everyone to trust her, and for that, she would have to interact with them without me around as a buffer. 

I knew her well enough to know that she would avoid talking unless absolutely necessary, which usually lead to me doing it on her behalf. But that wasn’t going to work here. They had to hear her feelings straight from the horse’s mouth. And I wasn’t exactly an unbiased party. 

Violet was going to have to earn back the fairy’s trust by herself. I only prayed she was capable of it. 

My thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock at the door. I knew instantly it was the master. I had told him there was no need for him to knock when entering his own office, but he always did anyway. 

“Come in,” I sighed. 

The master entered, followed by Grey, who seemed to be taking every chance he could to get close to me. 

“What is it?” I asked, shutting down my archive. 

“A letter just came for you.” the master said, “it’s from Takashi.”


	27. TWENTY SEVEN

*Violet's POV*

I kept my eyes on the floor as I followed Erza out of the guild hall. The moment we stepped into the main room, everyone became deadly silent. I tried not to think about what they were feeling as I walked by. 

We were almost out when Lucy joined us. She walked behind me through the tables on the way to the door. I could tell that she was a little annoyed that everyone was so quiet. She knew I was uncomfortable. She wanted me to feel safe. 

I didn’t deserve that. 

Just before we made it to the door, I felt a familiar presence move ahead of us. Natsu was standing near the entrance. We made brief eye contact before I returned my eyes to the floor, but I could still feel him looking at me. I didn’t want to think about him. I didn’t want to see him. 

Luckily he said nothing as we passed by, and soon Erza was pushing the doors open, and we stepped out of the guild hall and into the sun-lit street. Immediately, the smells and sounds of Magnolia reached me. I felt the emotional climate of the towns people rushing in to replace the less than pleasant distrust that I’d felt inside the guild hall. 

I took a long, deep breath. The part I’d been dreading most was over, but I knew I wasn’t out of the woods yet. I still had many hours to kill before August would arrive at Lucy’s house to save me, assuming he arrived at all. Until then, there were two ways that things could go. 

Either Lucy and Erza where going to try and talk to me, or they were going to leave me in an uncomfortable silence. On first glance I assumed that I would prefer the latter, but when I thought about it, both options seemed unbearable. 

If they tried talking to me, then I would have to talk back, a social minefield for sure. I had thought that there where a lot of tough topics before...somehow now that I had nothing to hide, the idea of interacting with them seemed so much worse. If something hit a little too close to home, I could no longer just construct a clever lie and then pat myself on the back for deceiving them. If they started talking to me...I would have to have a real conversation. Something I hadn't done with anyone other than August or Takashi. 

But if they stayed silent, would that be better? How long would I have to wait until August came back to offer companionship? What if he was silent too? I would have to sit there with them, felling their emotions, but never knowing where the emotions where coming from. I didn’t like either option. 

“Are you doing okay?” 

The question startled me, and I looked up to find that Lucy had halted in front of me. Erza had stopped as well, appearing at my side from behind. 

“I’m fine.” 

An obvious lie.

“You just started walking really slow.” Lucy said, “We can take a break if you need it. I know you’re still healing.” 

I blinked. Had I been going slow? 

“No,” I shook my head just a bit too fast, causing it to throb again. I didn’t want to be outside any longer than I had to be. “I’m fine, I don’t need a break.” 

Even if I hadn't noticed Lucy and Erza’s shared glance, I would have felt their doubt with my magic. 

I didn’t wait for them to speak again before I started walking, this time paying more attention to where I was. I hadn't noticed I’d been walking slow, thought it did make sense. I was still getting used to being on my feet again, and my thoughts were pulling me in all directions. 

We were only about halfway to Lucy’s apartment, not nearly far enough for how long we’d been walking, and yet, I had been keeping pace with the other women, both of which were perfectly healthy. Or perhaps...had they been keeping pace with me? 

The idea that they wouldn't leave me behind was new to me, thought I knew it made since when I considered the strange logic that seemed to drive every member of Fairy Tail. 

Of course they wouldn't leave me behind, it was against their better nature. 

Or because you’re their prisoner. 

I swallowed. The lacrama-infused bracelet that August had given me seemed to grow heavier on my wrist. I tried not to think anymore, and took to watching the paving stones disappear under my feet. Already they were going by slower and slower. 

I bawled my hand into a fist and lengthened my stride. Bigger steps. Faster. More power. I was not weak. I was not weak. 

I felt Lucy and Erza’s concern spike, but I didn’t care. I was cruising now, a full power walk, and it felt good, for about ten seconds. 

I could feel the way that my feet hit the ground, it was not the sure footed steps that I was used to. My breath was starting to come faster. Sweat dripped down my temples, despite the cool breeze. 

With a sigh of defeat I came to a dead stop, leaning against the closest building for support. I kept my eyes on the ground, for fear of meeting others, but I knew that we were close now. We were on the right street. If it was safe to look up I would be able to see our destination. I was so close, and yet...I couldn't bare another step. 

I could feel Lucy and Erza’s presence around me, though my hair blocked them from view. Both seemed to be debating whether or not to help me. I concentrated on slowing my breathing, I would wait until one of them was ready to act, then I would start moving again, it was best to avoid their concern. 

Without warning, I felt a hand clamp down on my shoulder. A single finger grazed my bare upper arm. With a hiss, I jumped back, out of reach. How had I not sensed that coming? I looked up just long enough to see that it was Erza who had touched me. How could she have been that sneaky? Did she figure out how I sensed her from the last time she’d tried it? 

I continued to pull away from her, bringing myself closer to Lucy in my panic. Lucky she stepped away before we could collide, her concern alerting me of her presence. 

I had broken their guard formation now. Behind me was nothing but open road, and I wanted nothing more than to turn on a dime and run for it. But I had just learned the hard way how unreliable my body was, and even if I could get away, I would never leave August. It was hopeless. 

I tipped dangerously forward then, and for a moment I considered letting myself fall. But then I remembered that Lucy and Erza’s hands would be on me in an instant, and with some effort I righted myself again. 

I took a long deep breath, fighting against the unwanted burning in the back of my eyes as I turned back in the direction of Lucy’s house and started walking again, slower than ever before. After a moment, I heard the other two start walking behind me. 

I looked up then, now that I was safe from accidental eye contact. The sky was a brilliant blue. And for whatever reason it was that of all the things that caused the tears to start falling.


	28. TWENTY EIGHT

*August's POV*

I held the letter in both hands, reading and rereading the outside of the envelope. It had the guild hall’s address, and my name. There was no return address, but I knew where it came from. A post box about twenty minutes from Justice Valkyrie’s northern outpost. And there was only one person there who would be sending me fan mail. 

“When did this come in?” I asked master Makarov, who was making his way calmly to his desk. 

“Just now,” he said, “I brought it right to you.” 

“So Violet doesn't know about it then?” 

“No,” the master said evenly, “She had already left for Lucy’s when it came in.” 

Good. the farther she was form this the better. 

“Is there a reason you don’t want her to know?” 

I took a deep breath, trying to calm the flash of anger that those words had given me. I found it quite easy to adjust to many of Fairy Tail’s standards after we had been found out. But there were still parts of the guild that put my teeth on edge. The master was one of them. 

He had a tendency to ask questions that I was sure he knew I didn’t want to give the answers to. I always tried to find polite ways to deny him the information, but after four days, of the same song and dance I was starting to lose my nerve. 

“If Takashi has sent me a letter,” I said, avoiding the question, “Then it's not good for any of us.”

He took a breath as if to say more, but fell silent as I ripped the envelope open. I had been expecting an angry letter, or perhaps even a new order from the master of Justice Vacancy, instead a communication lacrima feel onto the desk in front of me, starting a call without my permission. 

In a flash I scooped it up and moved to the other side of the room, so that all that could be seen was a blank wall behind me. I pulled my sleeve down, hiding the scar that was left behind when I’d removed my guild mark. “Get out of sight,” I ordered the master, “lock the door.” 

He did as I asked. 

The call connected, and I was face to face with Takashi. 

As my superior officer, he spoke first. “Well, look who it is,” he said. He appeared to be sitting in his office. A place that I had grown to despise. “I thought you were never going to answer.” 

“I only got the letter today.” I said, “You didn’t have to send it by snail mail.” 

“Well I wasn’t going to jump on another train now was I?” Takashi asked, “I don’t get paid for babysitting.” 

I considered making a witty remark, but thought better of it. I had to delay Justice Valkyries attack as long as possible. “I’m glad that I waited to get home before opening this.” I said, careful to keep my voice even. “What if one of the targets saw this? You should have sent it to our personal address.” 

Just as I said it, I remembered that I had not been checking the mail at our apartment. For all I knew he had tried that first. I would just have to blame it on the postal service. 

“Well I just assumed that that rat hole would be like a second home to you now,” Takashi said, “After all, I never did get my result.” 

“That’s because they’re keeping it quiet.” Already the pieces of the lie where coming together. 

Takashi leaned forward, but I couldn't tell if it was because he believed me or because he didn’t. I prayed it was the former. 

“Keeping it quiet?” he repeated. 

“The Salamander is a public figure.” I said, “the guild wants time to mourn before informing the outside world. And I believe there might be another reason. There have been rumors floating around about trying to get revenge on the killer.” 

“Do they know who that is?” Takashi asked, suddenly interested, then, “Where’s Violet?” 

“She’s safe.” I said, “she’s still at the guild hall. She pretended to be close to Natsu, so she needs to seem broken up about it.” 

“Was is her kill?” 

“Yes.” 

I briefly explained the plan that we had formed to kill Natsu, leaving out the part where it didn’t work out. 

“Amazing…” Takashi nodded, “give Violet my crongragualtons. That was a great one-hundred.” 

“I will.” I said, “I’m sure she’ll be honored.” 

“Do you have any plans on how to move forward?” 

“A few,” I said, “but we need to gather more entail first. Everyone is on their guard considering what happened.” 

“Yes, yes, of course.” Takashi nodded. “I will definitely report to my father about this.” 

That was good news at least. He had bought the lie. For now. 

“This is an important job. Once it’s all over, Justice Valkyrie will be held in higher regard than ever before. You’re doing good work.” 

“Thank you.” I nodded. I knew that this was high praise coming from Takashi, so I had to treat it as such. 

“Well, I’ll go ahead and let you go,” Takashi said, “I’m sure you have a funeral to help plan. But remember to destroy evidence of this communication, and expect more in the future.” 

“I will.” I nodded.

And then the transmission ended. 

I took a deep breath as tremors began to rack my body. There were so many things that could have gone wrong just then. So many ways that I could have been caught in a lie. 

And there were more transitions to come… how long could I keep this up? 

The master must have noticed my distress, for he stepped closer to me, reaching out as if to comfort a scared child. Is that what I was to him? 

“August?” 

I swiped the pager up from the desk and threw it onto the floor so hard it shattered. I stared at it for a moment, and then the rage took hold of me again, and I crushed it to dust with the heel of my shoe. 

The master took a step back. I had been careful to control my violent outbursts when I was being watched. But there was only so much I could take. I was sure that Takashi had believed my lies, for if not he would have taunted me with the ridiculousness of it all. But despite the temporary success, I knew I had only managed to dig myself in deeper. The longer I drew this out, the worse it would be when everything hit the fan. But I had no long term solutions. I had nothing, least of all time.


	29. TWENTY NINE

*Violet's POV*

Finally, we made it to Lucy’s apartment. The walk there had been a long one, and the stairs that waited once we did make it into the building had nearly bested me. But now I was finally standing outside the door, pretending that I didn’t feel Erza’s eyes on me as Lucy fit the key into the lock. 

The door sung open and I followed the blond inside hesitantly, stopping only to take off my shoes by the door. 

“Make yourself at home,” Lucy said, gesturing around the space. It wasn’t often that I spent time in someone else’s house, and when I did, it was always for a job, never as a guest. The only comparison I could make was the apartment that August and I where renting now, but even that was nothing compared to Lucy’ place. I had assumed that our home away from home looked the same as any other apartment. But now I saw how wrong we were. Everything about the room I was standing in screamed Lucy, as if the furniture itself represented her. I felt somewhat uncomfortable inside it, like I was seeing a part of her soul. But the Erza didn’t seem to have the same reaction, so I tried to hide my feelings towards it. 

I followed Lucy into what I assumed was the main room. Erza walked past me and sat on the floor by a low table. I stayed where I was. I didn’t want to be made vulnerable. 

There was a moment of awkward silence, finally broken by Lucy. “I have an idea.” she said, I knew she was looking at me, but I kept my eyes on the floor. “Why don’t you hop in my bath Violet? I bet you’ll feel better afterwards.” 

I opened my mouth...then closed it again. I knew in theory how baths were supposed to work. It was about cleansing the mind as much as the body, or so I had been told. I had never taken one myself. It was a luxury that was unnecessary. But I didn’t want to seem rude, besides, if was a good excuse for some time away from the other two, which I desperately wanted. 

“I would like that.” I said, careful not to let my tone give anything away. 

“Great!” Lucy stood. I sensed something in her that was more than her usual cheerful aura. Was that...relief? Was she happy to be rid of me? 

“I’ll go get you a towel and everything.” Lucy stood and left the room, leaving me alone with Erza. 

I still didn’t move. 

I felt Erza’s eyes on me, and was careful to look at the floor as I tried to get a read on her. She was thinking now, carefully, methodically, but about what I couldn’t guess. She seemed to have a tighter hold on her emotions than some of the others did. It made it harder for me to read her. 

I heard running water start somewhere behind me, and silently thanked Lucy for it, as I wasn’t sure that I would know how to turn it on myself. 

I sensed that Erza was going to speak before she did, and prepared myself for her words. 

“You’ll like Lucy’s bath, it’s a good one.” 

I sensed that she was just trying to make friendly conversation, but her words rose many questions. Had Erza used this bath before? How often did she stay here? How many other baths had she been in? I felt more separated from her than I ever had before. 

I felt Erza’s emotions change slightly, curiosity and concern, and realized that I had let too much time pass without giving a response. Idiot. But now it was too late to try and fix it. I would just have to pretend I hadn't heard her. 

I sensed Erza going through options in her head, probably trying to decide whether or not she should repeat the question, but lucky Lucy returned before she could. 

“Everything you need is in the bathroom,” she said, joining Erza at the table. “You can use whatever you like, and don’t worry about your bandages, I’ll help you put new ones on when you’re done.” 

I choked out a “Thank you,” and turned down the hall that Lucy had come from, veering off into the bathroom and sliding the door shut behind me, relieved that there was finally a barrier between me and the Fairies. 

The tub as almost full now, and I saw that Lucy had already taken the liberty of adding bubbles to the water. I watched them dance on the surface for a few minutes before turning the water off, plunging me into silence. 

There was a fluffy white towel waiting for me on the counter, folded delicately with a washcloth on top. I bought it to my face, feeling the softness on my cheek. Did Lucy get to experience this everyday? No wonder she was so happy all the time. 

I moved back toward the door where the trash can was and started to remove my clothes and bandages. As I did so, I realized that I could hear voices from the other room. I knew that I shouldn't eavesdrop, but there was no way to avoid it. 

“This is so strange,” Lucy was saying. “I mean, she’s killed people, a lot of people, and she’d right there in my bathroom.”

“Does she scare you?” Erza asked. 

“No,” Lucy said, immediately backpedaling, “I mean, not in the way I thought she would...she’s just a kid you know? I can’t imagine…” 

“I don’t think anyone can,” Erza sighed.

“With August,” Lucy said, “it’s like he’s a totally different person from before. You can tell he was pretending. But Violet...she seems the same to me, though now she’s even more jumpy. I can’t imagine someone like that being a killer.” 

“Well we can give our thanks to that guild of theirs.” Erza said, and I felt her anger spike. “I’m sure a life like that did a number on both of them.” 

“Right.” Lucy said, and both fell silent, thinking. 

I removed the last bandage and dropped it into the trash can, starting to move toward the tub when Lucy spoke again. 

“I think I’m going to go pick up some food for us.” she said, “You mind staying here.” 

“Not at all.” Erza said.

“Okay then,” I heard her voice come closer was she walked to the front door. “I’ll be back in a few.” 

“See you soon.” 

I stayed where I was for a few minutes longer, then stepped into the bath. I felt the water rise around me, as if I was crawling into a warm bed. The bubbles smelled like cherry blossoms, and I felt my sore muscles relax. I savored the moment. It felt so peaceful and safe. I knew I didn’t deserve it. 

~~~

*Lucy's POV*

Lucy made her way out of the apartment and down the road toward a little corner store that she knew had good take-out. She had summoned Pule to keep her company, but even then she couldn't help but feel unsafe. 

Despite what she now knew about Violet's background, Lucy couldn't bring herself to fear the girl directly. It was a different kind of fear, thought she couldn't quite put her finger on it. 

It was clear to Lucy that Violet's skills here nothing to be sneezed at, but there was still no way she could have defeated Natsu. The severity of her loss to him seemed to undermine what should have been reason to hate her. 

When Violet was still asleep, Lucy had done her best to keep her comfortable. She’d spent a lot of time with her in the infirmary, but now that Violet was awake, Lucy as unsure of how to approach her. 

Now that the jig was up, Lucy saw that August had no interest in trying to make friends, despite his efforts to help prepare Fairy Tail for the upcoming attack. But Lucy wasn’t sure about Violet. She had seemed shy before, but the stress of being found out had definitely taken things to the extreme. She seemed hardly capable of holding a conversation now. 

Lucy rounded a corner, crashing into someone on the other side, she stared an apology before realizing who it was, “Grey?” 

“Oh hey,” he said, taking a step back, “I was just heading over to find you.” his eyes narrowed, “Weren't you supposed to be watching Violet?” 

“She’s at my house with Erza now.” Lucy assured him, “I just came out to grab us some food.” 

“Oh,” Gray relaxed, “Alright then.” 

“You can head over there to if you want.” Lucy offered, “But I thought August and Natsu where going to come with you latter tonight.” 

Gray reached up, scratching the back of his head, “yeah there’s been a change of plans.” 

“Change of plans?” 

“Natsu’s under house arrest.” Gray said, “and August is going to stay at the guildhall again to night.” 

Lucy blinked, “why?” 

“It’s kinda a long story,” Grey sighed, “basically, August got a lacrama transmission form that Takashi guy, and ended up telling him that Natsu was dead to keep him off our trial. So Gramps is making him stay at the guild in case anyone comes looking to confirm it.” 

“I’m sure he’s loving that,” Lucy snorted. 

“Oh yeah,” Grey smirked, “You should see him! Thought you might wanna keep your distance, he’s burning anything that gets to close.” 

Lucy suppresses a giggle at the thought of it. Natsu definitely didn’t take well to being cooped up, thought she had to agree that it was probably the best thing for now. 

“August is staying at the guild just in case Takashi doesn't actually believe him, but Gramps says we should be good for now. So I just came to tell you.” 

“Well I can get the word to Erza and save you the tip,” Lucy offered,

“Eh don’t worry about it,” Grey said, “I was gonna stay over at your place anyway.”

“Of course you where…” 

“Oh and by the way,” Grey said, “When you get back, don’t tell Violet that Takashi made contact. Gramps said it would be best if she doesn’t know.” 

“Does he think we can’t trust her?” Lucy asked, that same uneasiness returning.

“Beat’s me,” Grey shrugged, “I’m just the messenger.” 

“Right.” Lucy sighed, “Well I’ll meet you back at my place then.”

“Yeah see you there.” 

Lucy watched Grey walk past her toward the apartment and then turned back the road preparing to get enough food for all of them now. “Things just keep getting more complicated huh Plue?” 

The spirit grunted in what must have been an answer, and despite not understanding, Lucy felt a little better.


	30. THIRTY

*August's POV*

If I had known that I would have to listen to Natsu all night, then I would have gone to Lucy’s with Grey. I had heard from other guild members that Natsu wasn’t one who took well to being cooped up, but I didn’t think it would be this bad. He was practically bouncing off the walls. 

Even so, I was careful not to let my annoyance show. I still considered myself a guest at the guild that Natsu was home to, and didn’t really think it was my place to be upset about it. Not to mention that it was my fault he was in the situation anyway. 

Master Makarov had no such qualms however. He seemed to have no problem yelling at Natsu for being too loud. He sat near me at the bar where I was eating my dinner alone, watching Natsu run from corner to corner. 

We had told him why he needed to stay hidden for the time being. Fairy Tail was far from prepared for Justice Valkyrie to take action, so the longer we could delay conflict, the better. It was this understanding, and the master’s insistence that finally made Natsu begrudgingly agree to stay inside in the first place. But he was starting to wear on everyone’s nerves. 

“We know where the guild is camped don’t we?” Natsu was yelling. “Why not just go there now and bust some heads.” 

“Yeah that’s a great idea Natsu,” Cana said from a nearby table, “go storm a guild full of highly trained assassins with no back up. I’m sure that would go well.” 

I took another bite of my food. I knew that the guns blazing approach had worked for Fairy Tail in the past. But I’d begged the master not to take that route this time. There was no direct danger yet. And despite my confidence in Fairy tail, I wasn’t sure I was willing to watch them all march into what would likely become a blood bath, even if I was only in it for Vi an I. 

Of course there was also the legal side of things to worry about. The master had agreed to not contact the council for the time being. It would be easy to send in a call reporting all of Justice Valkyrie’s locations and then let the rune knights take care of it, but he would have to say where the information came from, and Violet and I would be subject to the same sentences as our previous guild mates. 

I told him that I would gladly turn myself in if it meant the rune knight's aid, but he always told me he didn't want to hear it. If the master was determined to find another way, then I wasn’t going to be the one to stop him. 

A crash sounded behind me, drawing me out of my thoughts. It appeared that Natsu had started another fight in his boredom. This guild was so weird. 

I flinched as Natsu went sailing past my head and crashed into the wall, only to rize unscathed and run back to the fray. 

I turned to watch him go. If a fight like this had broken out at my old guild thing would be over fast, stopped by Takashi or some other higher-up, and resulting in at least one death. 

“Not going to join in August?” the master asked from the counter beside me. 

I looked at him to see if he was joking, but his eyes were on the rest of the guild, twinkling in amusement. 

“No thanks.” I said, figuring it was a valid response regardless of how he’d intended the question. 

Despite the energy to fight, it was clear that Natsu was the real culprit. He had always been a bit of an anomaly to me. I understood his actions in theory, but not what led him to them. 

I was endlessly grateful to him for sparing Violet’s life of course, though I hadn't had the guts to interact with him since. I caught him looking at me sometimes, but he never tried to talk. I figured it was just as well. I didn’t really want to think about him. Not after seeing Violet’s state after he brought her back. 

I knew it was unfair to hold Natsu accountable for that of course. She had been the one to attack him after all, and had been in disguise at the time, but I couldn't bring myself to want to talk to him. Not after what happened. 

I couldn't even imagine what it must be like for Violet. As far as I knew she hadn't talked to Natsu. Though I knew the master might disagree, I figured it would be better if they never did. 

After Violet had come back that night, I knew that everything would be different. Even though I had managed to cut a deal with the master, I was not the person that he thought I was when I joined. 

In my mind, any relationships made before they knew who I was were null and void now. They had all been lies, and now that the jig was up, there was no real reason to maintain them. My only job now was to make sure that Fairy Tail was ready to face Justice Valkyrie. I didn’t need to be their friend to do that. 

Of course I hadn't shared these sentiments with Violet. Not that I would have had the chance even if I wanted to. But I knew that things would be Different for her. 

I had always been one who jumped at the opportunity for undercover work, much to Violet’s disdain. When I was undercover, I made up an entirely new character. It was how I distanced myself from the targets. They weren’t friends with me. They were friends with the person I made up. 

But it wasn’t like that for Vi. She had not created some other version of herself for the fairies to interact with. It had been her. Sure, she had hidden some of the less acceptable details, and no one other than me really understood. But the person they had made friends with was Violet herself. And now she had betrayed them all. 

I wasn’t sure if she would be able to take it.


	31. THIRTY ONE

I could hardly believe I’d gone my whole life without taking a bath. Now that I knew what it was like I wondered how I had ever been able to relax before. 

But I couldn't stay there forever. 

Only a few minutes after Lucy left, I had managed to get myself completely clean. It wasn’t easy to move around with all my injuries, but after years of training, I had long since learned how to deal with pain. To show weakness in Justice Valkyrie was a dangerous game. I had the scars to prove it. 

The bathroom felt strangely quiet compared to the noise in my head. The only sound was that of the popping bubbles around me, and the occasional shuffle from Erza in the other room. 

The aura of it was so peaceful. But I knew that there was so much wrong. This wasn’t my house. And Erza isn't my friend, only a glorified bodyguard. The last thing I wanted to do was go back outside where she was waiting. But I couldn't bear to wait in the tub any longer either. 

I knew that Lucy would probably be returning with our dinner soon. Once she did, I could occupy myself by eating rather than talking. It was that thought, and the promise of food itself that gave me the confidence I needed to rise out of the cooling water. I dried quickly, careful to guide the towel around any of my sore spots. 

Lucy had left me with a change of clothes. They weren’t exactly my size, as Lucy was several inches taller than me, not to mention the difference in chest size, but I made it work. Now all I had left to do was go out and face Erza. 

My hands shook at my sides, moving without permission. I took a deep breath. Already I could feel my wounds starting to react to going so long without being covered. And the only bandages I had were out there. I had to go. 

Before I could change my mind, I gathered all my courage and exited the bathroom, feeling the cool air outside hit me like a bucket of ice water. I forced my feet to keep walking until I rounded the corner to the room where Erza was sitting at Lucy’s table. It was as if I hadn't left at all.

Erza turned to me as I took a few more steps into the room. I did my best not to shrink away under her icy stare. 

“You look a lot better.” she said. Her kind tone made me relax in spite of myself. For better or for worse, she was sincere. 

“I feel better.” I said, my voice felt small in the big room. I wasn’t used to talking. 

“Lucy went out to find us some food in case you were wondering,” Erza said, filling me in on the information that I would have missed if I hadn't been eavesdropping. “She should be back soon though.” 

I didn’t know what to say, so I said nothing, and took another step into the room, trying to relax. I noticed that Lucy had laid out bandages on the table, and knew they were meant for me. 

Erza must have noticed I was looking at them. 

“I can help you if you-” 

“That’s okay.” I said, walking farther still. “I can do it myself.” 

Erza looked at me dubiously, but didn’t argue. 

I took a deep breath and closed the rest of the way to the table, staying as far away from erza as was possible. I carefully dropped to my knees across from her, not looking up as I reached for the medical supplies. 

I had dressed my own wounds several times myself, though I also usually had August's help when I needed it. Justice Valkyrie would supply healing supplies, but there was no doctor to help us use them, much less a sky dragon slayer. 

I had memorized where my previous bandages had been placed before taking them off, and set about putting the new ones in the same places. I trusted that the original configuration was better than anything that I could have come up with on my own. 

Most of it was easy going, but when I reached my arms, I came to an impasse. I needed both hands. I struggled to try and get the bandage down for several minutes, using my mouth as an extra hand, but still I was getting nowhere. 

I could feel Erza watching me, but I didn’t dare look up and meet her gaze. I was not weak. I could do this myself. I watched as the baggage slipped and fell to the floor again. 

I heard Erza rize from the other side of the table, heading out of the room. I sensed her pity, knew that she probably didn’t want to have to watch me struggle anymore than she had to. I didn’t blame her for leaving me. 

I reached for the fallen bandage, somewhat comforted at the idea of being alone. But then the feeling went away. I dropped the bandage again, sensing a presence on my left. Erza had come closer to me? How had I not noticed. 

“You know,” she said, when she noticed me stiffen, “it’s okay to ask for help.” 

I opened my mouth, then closed it again, leading forward so that my hair would fall to hide my face. I could sense that Erza was expecting a response, but I didn’t know how to give her one. I reached for the fallen bandage once more. 

I felt her concern spike, and looked up at her in confusion. Her eyes found mine immediately, and I turned away again, realizing my error. It felt like my heart was melting, under her heat lamp eyes, falling as thick wax on my rib cage. 

I knew what she wanted from me. 

I took a deep breath. 

“Can-can you…” 

She was unchanged. 

“I need….I can't-” I cut myself off. I felt ridiculous, ashamed. Why would she want to help me? She was the enemy. 

“Do you need help?” Erza asked, taking pity on my inability to form the right words. 

I nodded, not trusting myself to speak, trying to ignore the burning the back of my eyes. I shifted my body to face her, though I kept my gaze fixed on the floor. Erza reached forward and took the bandage from my hand before taking my arm as well. 

I felt her grip falter as she became able to read me. She paused, and I felt eyes on me again, searching for my face. I did not meet them. Finally she let out a sigh and gently pulled my arm forward, wrapping it carefully before repeating the process with the other. Her gentleness confused and scared me. Excluding August, ever touch I knew had been an unwelcome one. But it was soon clear that Erza had no intention of hurting me. It was just the opposite. 

I wondered if she felt me working through that revaluation. I was too overwhelmed by her hands on mine to get a proper reading. 

Finally, she let go of my wrists, and I allowed my arm to drop to my lap. Not moving. I mumbled out what was hopefully understood to be a “thank you,” and then shrank farther into my hair, turning back toward the table and staring into my lap. 

Erza however did not move. Though she was no longer touching me, it was as though I could feel the warmth of her next to me. I wished that she would return to her spot on the other side of the room. I debated whether or not it would be worth it to take the initiative myself, and move away from her. 

Before I could come to a decision, I heard the sound of the door opening. Lucy had returned. Erza stood, presumably to greet her. I stayed where I was. 

“There you are,” a voice called. It was male. Definitely not Lucy. Alarmed, I reached out to read the intruder's aura, relaxing a bit when it became clear it was only Grey, though I was no less concerned. He was supposed to come with August and Natsu. Why was he alone? 

“You were so quiet I thought you might have left.” he said. 

“We’re here,” Erza said. I sensed in her that Gray wasn’t the only one deterred by my silence. “I didn’t think you would be coming until later.” 

Grey hesitated. There was a reason, but he didn’t want to say it. “There was a little change of plans.” he said, “I already talked to Lucy on the way here. But the short version is, Natsu and August aren’t coming tonight.” 

Something cold shot down my spine. August wasn’t coming? Why not? Was he safe? 

“Is something wrong?” Erza asked, brave enough to voice my fears. 

“No no,” Grey back peddled, “nothing like that, just something the master decided.” 

Now that was a lie if I’d ever heard one. There was something bigger going on there, something they didn’t want me to know about, and I knew that Erza had noticed, and was choosing to play along. 

“Well we’ll just have to make it with the four of us then.” she said, “once Lucy gets back that is.” 

I swallowed. Just the four of us. Me and three Fairies, two of which had been targets. And now there was no August to play middle man. I felt my stomach begin to turn. The night had only just begun. 

*Topaz's POV*

Topaz looked up from the pile of papers in front of her. She had seen many of Justice Valkyrie's projects before, even helped with some of them. But there was nothing as ambitious as this before. 

“What do you think?” Kaze asked from across the room. 

“I think it’s very interesting.” Topaz said. 

“Are we going to do anything about it?” Kaze asked.

Topaz filled her cheeks with air and blew it out slowly, something she did often when considering what to do. “Have you ever made job requests for a light guild before?” she asked Kaze. 

“Um..no?” 

“There’s a first for everything I guess,” she said, returning from her desk and reaching for a pen. “It looks like we’re going to need the help from some so called Fairies.”


	32. THIRTY TWO

*Violet's POV*

I closed my eyes as I heard Erza lead Grey into the main room of Lucy's apartment. I hadn’t spoken to him since Natsu dragged me back to the guild hall, and I didn’t want to now. Something in his aura told me that I may not have the choice. He seemed determined to draw information out of me. 

I wondered if he had the same attitude as August. Considering how he was acting lately I wouldn't be at all surprised if he let Grey talk to him. Whatever the case, Grey was going to find me harder to crack than August. 

Erza returned to her place across from me, and Grey sat to my left, the closest spot to the door. I didn’t look up. Though I felt their eyes on me. If Grey had passed Lucy but not come in with her, then he had probably met up with her on her way to the store, not on the way back. That ment that she still had to buy food and walk back to the apartment. But I couldn't remember how long ago she had left, and even if I had, I didn’t know how far along she was when Grey ran into her. There was no way to accurately predict when she would be back. No way to accurately predict when I would have a distraction. Without August, I was going to need to deal with all the others alone. I wasn’t sure I could survive it. 

Grey cleared his throat, perhaps trying to get me to look up. I hardly dared to breathe. I felt his determination switch to annoyance. Erza let out a sigh. 

“Just when she was warming up to us.” Erza said, perhaps prompted by Grey’s expression, which I couldn't imagine was pleasant. “Now it’s like we’re back to square one.” 

“More like negative fifty,” Grey mumbled. 

I was careful not to let my face change. My hair provided some cover, but not nearly enough. I forced myself to breathe, to look normal. But I knew I wasn’t acting normal. I had been silent for too long. I wondered if they thought I had brain damage. 

A few more minutes passed, and Grey seemed to be growing more and more restless. I realized for the first time that Erza was probably more comfortable with my since, or perhaps just me in general, than the others. I wondered if that was why they had sent her. 

Erza didn’t seem to mind my silence but I could tell that Grey wanted to talk, to have an interaction. I heard the sound of fabric on fabric as Grey shifted to another position. And then less than a minute later he did it again. A part of me was silently thanking my training for not allowing me to get bored. But Erza had a different reaction, she almost seemed annoyed as Grey shifted under the table again. I wondered if she would scold him in front of me, or try to keep it to herself.

Suddenly there was a loud bang. And a grunt. I jumped to my feet, fully alert. My hand automatically snapped to my waist, going for the hilt of my dagger. All it found was empty space. I realized with a shock that my weapon wasn’t there. Of course not. I had lost it in the woods. 

I looked down to see Erza and Grey still at the table, both staring at me, frozen. 

I noticed the way Grey's legs were positioned under the table, and suddenly realized what the source of the noise had been, Grey’s knee hitting the wood as he shifted around. 

Heat rose to my cheeks. My fear from the sound was soon replaced by embarrassment from my overreaction. I’d made the mistake of looking at the two of them, and there was no talking it back now. They had seen my face. 

Both of them were staring up at me, still unmoving. I was too panicked to get a read on them. I turned my gaze to the ground, trying to control my breathing. Slowly, as if my arm weighed a million pounds, I pulled it back to a neutral position at my side, rather than reaching for the dagger that was no longer there. 

I was starting to get a better grip on my magic. Unfortunately I felt the waves of concern that we radiating off the others. Both of them were debating whether or not to say anything to me. I continued to steady my breathing, debating whether to sit back down or hide in the other room when another sound came through the house. 

This time we all jumped, but I was quick to realize that it was only the door opening. I sensed Lucy’s presence on the other side of the apartment just before she called out to us. 

“I’m back!” 

Grey stood, perhaps to help her, perhaps to get away from me. I stood where I was awkwardly, watching Lucy appear in the room, handing her bag to Grey who moved to place it on the table. 

I noticed that there was a strange snowman-like creature also carrying a bag. I assumed it must be one of her spirits, a suspicion that was confirmed when it walked back to her and disappeared with a bow and a flash of golden light. 

I had never seen celestial spirit magic up close before, and despite the situation I found myself wishing I was on go enough terms with Lucy to ask her about it. Of course this would have been easy a few days ago, back before everything hit the fan. But I wouldn't have even bothered then, since Lucy wasn’t a target. 

I sensed Lucy’s attention shift to me, the first indication that I had been staring. I quickly looked away without a word, shrinking back to my spot at the table. It took more time than I would have liked since I had to retrieve the cushion that I had sent flying back when I’d first been startled to attention. I didn’t look up to see the look that the other three shared, my silver tongue told me it happened. 

I had just finished getting seated, leaning forward to reestablish the hair curtain when I heard Lucy clap her hands together. “I went to my favorite place to pick this up so dig in!” 

Her voice felt strange in what had been a sound vacuum in her absence, but I found myself grateful for her effort to cut the tension. She didn’t know it, but the other’s were more relaxed in her presence. 

Grey leaned forward to distribute the little bentos while Lucy made her way to the only empty spot on the other side of the table. 

I realized then that they all seemed rather comfortable with their placement around the room. Lucy was sitting in the same place now that she had been when we had first entered the apartment. And from Erza's comments about the bath I could gather that she had been here before. Was this where they all normally sat? But then? What about me? A shiver ran up my spine as I realized that I must be in Natsu’s usual seat. 

My reaction to the realization was to sudden, and it alerted the others to my distress immediately, though of course they didn’t know the cause. 

“Are you not hungry?” Erza asked. 

I moved my eyes up from my lap just enough to see that a bendo and pair of disposable wooden chopsticks had been placed in front of me. Erza’s tone had been polite enough, but I sensed something else in her mind. I was going to eat what was in front of me whether I liked it or not. 

I took a deep breath and reached for the chopsticks, clasping them between my hands as I mumbled out a “thank you for the meal.” before separating the sticks and removing the protective plastic from the box. 

The others around me had started eating, and I tried to follow their lead, but it was difficult to move my healing arm with the burn still on it, not that I could have kept the food down if I had gone quickly anyway. 

I sensed that Lucy was also uncomfortable in the silence, but unlike Grey’s constant shifting and grumbling, she broke up the awkwardness by filling it. She described how nice it was outside, and some of the interactions she’s had at the store. 

I sensed that she wasn’t aware of it, but her meaningless story seemed to be bringing her comrades peace of mind, and I found that they confronted me as well. Perhaps I didn’t prefer silence. The realization bought my no peace. It wasn’t like I could start a conversation anyway, I was far too shy. Especially around Fairy tail. Especially now. 

The others finished eating far before I did. Even Lucy who had spent more time talking than eating was done sooner than me. I hadn’t even made it a quarter of the way thought. Slowly the awkwardness got to me, and I stopped eating all together. 

A moment later I heard Lucy speak, her words directed to me for the first time since she got back. “I can wrap that up if you want to save for later.” 

I nodded vigorously and shoved my box in her general direction. I felt it disappear from under my fingertips and pulled my arms back to my lap. 

Lucy left the room for a moment and I stared at my hands. 

I sensed Grey was about to speak before he did, though not to me. “She hasn’t said anything since I got here.” he whispered to Erza. 

That wasn’t true. I gave my thanks for the meal. Six words. Six words that Grey shamelessly ignored. 

This however didn’t seem to be Erza’s angle of protest. 

“She can hear you.” her voice was calm and collected as ever, but I could practically hear her smirk. 

Grey turned back to me. 

I could feel Erza's little bubble of joy. If she were someone else, it might have been released as a laugh. But as it was, it must have been a little smile that I couldn't see without risking eye contact. 

“Why haven’t you said anything?” he asked. 

His abruptness surprised me, but I guess I should have expected it after Erza told him off. 

I sat in for a while, trying to gather my thoughts. First I had to decide whether or not to answer, then I had to know what to say. There were a lot of things to think over. How did everyone else deal with it? I knew he was expecting an answer, but how could I give him one? There was nothing in mind. except...

“Six words.” I spit them out before I could think better of them. Maybe any reaction was better than none at all. 

I felt Gray’s shock hit me like a truck. Even Erza seemed taken aback. A hand felt over my mouth. Stupid stupid stupid. 

“What did you say?” Grey asked. 

I sighed. There was no talking it back now. “You asked me why I hadn’t said anything.” I reported, as if this were some kind of debrief. “But I did speak. I said six words when Lucy gave me the food.”

Grey snorted and leaned back, at first I assumed that it must have been in disgust, and cringed away unwillingly. But after a quick read I realized that the sound must have been some kind of laugh. 

I looked up in surprise, only to see both Grey and Erza gazing down at me. Neither one was angry. I recognized the look. It was how they regarded me before it had been revealed that I was an assassin. 

I stared at them longer than I knew I should have before forcing my eyes back to the floor. They were burning now, though I couldn't be sure why. I blinked hard, and felt the emotions of the other two change around me, they must have noticed.

Not good.

I couldn't think of anything else to do, so I stood quickly and headed towards the bathroom, mumbling out a rushed “excuse me.” as I left the room. I kept my eyes on the floor as I rounded the corner, and crashed right into Lucy. 

We both let out a yelp of surprise at the contact. Her arms fell on my shoulders to steady me, her soft hands brushing the skin on the insides of the too wide neckline. 

She stared at me for a moment, unsure of what to do. The contact sent me over the edge. I only had time to mumble out an apology before the tears began to fall. I sensed Lucy’s shock, amplified by the hands on my shoulders. It was too much. I didn’t want it. I tore away from her lunged for the bathroom. 

I slid the door shut behind me with finality. I was crying freely now. There was a short moment when I let out a sigh of relief for the barrier I had managed to place between the Fairies and I. The sound of Lucy’s voice floated in from the other room. Carrying with it the reminder that I could still hear them from the bathroom. 

“What happened?” Lucy asked the others, “Violet just ran by, and…” she trailed off. My silver tongue told me it was because of the others’ expressions. 

“I don’t know.” Grey said, his voice was unlike I had ever heard it before. “One minute it was fine, and then she looked like she was going to cry.” 

They were all so confused, and I knew I couldn't blame them. There was no way for them to know why I was upset. I didn’t know why I was upset. I turned and placed my back on the door and slid down it. My hands found their way to my ears, as a position that was not unfamiliar to me. My hands blocked out the voices enough to turn the words indistinguishable. but I couldn't stop the stream of emotions from the other room. No more than I could stop the ache in my own heart.


	33. THIRTY THREE

*Violet's POV*

I hid in the bathroom for a long time. Longer than I knew It was probably safe to. But I can't make myself leave. After the scene I made, it would be obvious I was hiding from them. 

I was careful to control my breathing. I was not attempting to stop my crying, as I knew it was a futile fight. But my instinct kept it quiet. Long breaths thought my mouth, never using the nose. That was the key to silent crying. Something I had long since learned after several long nights in the barracks at Justice Valkyrie. 

Several minutes passed. I moved to place my ear to the door, but there were no voices now, just the soft swish and scrape of moving fabric. I assumed they must be laying out bed rolls and preparing for sleep. Maybe I would get lucky and they would leave me in the bathroom for the night. That might be preferable as I had already decided that I would not be sleeping.

I had no doubt that I would be sharing a room with at least one of them. I was no stranger to communal sleep, and that was the reason for my nervousness. I had been told, mostly through clenched teeth, that I had a tendency to thrash and talk in sleep. My memories backed up the claims. I had always been prone to nightmares. 

It had been a while since my last one, and for a blissful month or so I thought I might have rid myself of them, but after my last attempt at sleeping I wasn’t optimistic about things. 

I knew that I was capable of lying awake all night. I had done it before. Though I figured that once the others were fast asleep I might take a walk around Magnolia. I wouldn't really be hurting anyone if I came back before they woke, and I had already gotten my taste of the empty city. I was ready for it again, not to mention the much needed solitude. 

After some time, the sifting of blankets stopped, and my tears ran dry. I did my best to blow my nose quietly then returned to my perch by the door. Something had changed outside. The auras of the other three had shifted. They were discussing something in hushed voices. 

Then it stopped. I concentrated on the others, trying to figure out what happened, then there was a sudden knock at the door. I almost let out a shriek. 

“Vi?”

It was Grey. 

“Are you okay?” 

I took a deep breath. I knew my voice was going to be hard to control due to misuse, not to mention the crying. Was it safe to answer? 

“You don’t have to talk if you don't want to,” he said, and I heard a sliding motion. Was he sitting on the other side of the door now? I looked up, as though I could see him through the wood. 

“I’m sorry I said anything about it before,” he said. 

I read him. definitely sincere. But I still didn't understand. 

“I didn’t mean to upset you.” 

And he felt regret. For me. For what he said. For looking at me like he had before it all went wrong. He was sorry. And he didn’t even know why. He didn’t even know what he did and he was sorry. It didn’t make any sense. But I could feel it. He wasn’t lying. 

“There’s a futon for you,” he offered. “If you wanna take it.” 

I had assumed as much. 

“It’s your choice,” Grey said. Then his aura changed. It wasn’t something I was used to. I leaned forward, not sure what was coming next, prepared for the caveat. “Thought if you say no...Erza might break down the door and force you into it.” 

A giggle fell out of me. That’s what I had been so afraid of? A bad joke? 

I sensed Grey freeze on the other side of the door, then he let out a sigh of relief, and a little chuckle himself, “for a second I wasn’t sure if you were in there. You sure are quiet.” 

In response I stood and opened the door. I did so slowly in case Grey really was leaning against it as I suspected. He scrambled to his feet when he realized the barrier between us had disappeared. 

“I’m glad you-oh.” 

Oh? What did that mean? Was something wrong? Did he want me to stay in the bathroom?

“Sorry,” he said, scratching the back of his head and looking away, “Your face…” 

I metaly cursed myself. I hadn’t even thought of looking in the mirror before opening the door. I did so now. My eyes looked like they belonged to a forest vulcan, bloodshot and watery, the area around them was also pink, not to mention my nose. Not even my hair had gone untouched, it fell in a sheet of cowlicks where I had been running my hands thought it. 

“Sorry,” Grey blurted, taking a step toward me. 

I resisted the urge to step back, watching his movements next to me in the mirror. He reached out as if to pull me away. Then his hand froze, and retracted. 

“Come on,” he said. 

He stared out of the room, pausing to wait for me, slowly, I pulled my eyes away from the mirror and placed them at their usual place on the ground. I followed Grey into the main room, where the others had pushed the table away and spread out several bed rolls. Ever since arriving, I had been fearing that they would force me to sleep in the bed. It was not something I wanted to take away from Lucy. So though I knew it was rude, I picked the roll closest to the door and set myself down on it, closing my eyes as if I was exhausted, not even looking at the others. 

I sensed that the others were discouraged by this, confirming my suspicion that the bed was meant for me. But I didn’t move, and I knew that they wouldn't risk upsetting me. 

I sensed someone leaning over me, and opened my eyes slowly, hoping I looked sleepy. 

It was Erza. 

“I have more medicine for you.” she said, holding out a handful of pills. I recognized two of them to be the same they had given me before. Sleeping pills. 

Erza offered me a glass of water, and I picked out the pills that would go down first. I was no expert, but I figured they would be safe, I doubted they would give me two different kinds of sleeping drugs, and I saw no issue with anything other than that. 

I swallowed the pills in groups of two, even though I knew I could handle all of them at once. I left the large shiny sleeping pills for last.

I took from Erza, knowing she would not take no for an answer. I popped the pills into my mouth and took in the last of the water. Quickly and carefully I used my tongue to push the pills against the roof of my mouth, swallowing the water around them. I used the rouse of wiping my mouth to hide the movement of my tongue as it sifted the pills from the top of my mouth on the bottom, then tucked them under, out of sight. 

“Thank you,” I told Erza, making a show of my supposedly empty mouth. 

She nodded with satisfaction and stood. I lay back down on my bed roll, making sure that my hair hid my face, and and setting my hand to rest near my chin in a natural looking manner. Then I carefully slipped my pills into my closed fist. 

Slowly the others shifted around, changing clothes and settling into their own beds, and then the lights were turned off, and all was silent. 


	34. THIRTY FOUR

*Violet's POV*

One by one they all fell asleep around me. Erza was the last. For a few minutes I was afraid that she might be intending to stay up all night, a guard of sorts. but finally I sensed that she was asleep. 

They had been lulled into a false sense of security by the sleeping pills they thought I’d taken. I shifted my fingers, feeling the pills that were still enclosed in them. I was free. 

Slowly, I sat up, rubbing at my neck. I had been lying like that for a few hours at least. I paid close attention to the others around me, but they were all sleeping soundly. They all looked rather peaceful. It wasn’t uncommon for me to see a target asleep, waking only to find my knife embedded in their chest. 

If only August and I had known that Fairy tail was so prone to slumber parties a few days earlier. Even now, I felt strange, alone in a room with at least two defenseless targets. Of course I had no weapon to kill them with now. And everyone would know it was me, they would descend on August in an instant. I turned away from the sleeping bodies and to the door. 

Finally, for the first time since I had set out on the job with Natsu. I was alone. 

I had to stop myself from sprinting down the stairs. I was so ready to be out in the sweet smelling city, alone and free at night, but I forced myself to walk. I had plenty of time to kill. 

I walked along the canal, watching the dark water sloshing against the neatly cut stone. I went in the opposite direction of the house that August and I had been staying in before. 

I ended up wandering to south gate park, a place that I had heard about in many stories around the guild hall even though I had never been there myself. It was empty now of course, as it was nearly two in the morning, but somehow I liked it better this way. 

The moonlight seemed to turn the grass into silver shards of glass. The large tree in the center acted as a kind of dome over the whole thing. It felt like my own little part of paradise. 

I walked to a soft looking patch of grass and lowered myself onto it, lying on my back and watching the moonlight dance through the leaves of the tree above me. 

I took in a long breath. Finally, I was completely and utterly alone. My tears returned again, and this time I made no effort to silence my sobs. There was no one around to hear me. And I knew I didn’t want to waste a moment of solitude. I had to get things out of my system while it was safe to. 

I still hadn't had time to process everything that had happened in the woods, and suddenly I had been thrown into the thick of August's new plan. I knew that he must know what he was doing, but since he hadn’t told me I was stumbling around blind. 

I knew that we couldn't go back to Justice Valkyrie, and August knew that too, or he would have kept his guild mark. But then...what was the plan? The Master had said that August was helping him prepare for our old guild’s inevitable attack. So did August mean to stay here? I didn't want that either. I couldn't stand it. 

The fairies were nice enough, but I wanted nothing to do with them. What confused me more is that I knew her help was genuine. They wanted me to eat. They wanted me to talk to them. But why? 

None of it made sense. 

A violent sob racked my body, tightening the pain in my chest. I sat up from the grass and scooted back until I was resting against the great tree in the middle of the park. Then I circled my head with my hands and sobbed. 

I knew of course that this was dangerous. I was vulnerable in every scene of the word. My hair was covering my eyes, my hands over my ears. My emotions were too overwhelming to sense if anyone was approaching. But I didn't care. I didn't want to interact with the world. I wished it would forget me and move on, allowing my body to stay put while the rest of the planet continued hurtling through space, leaving me all alone. 

I don't know how long I had been there when the crying finally stopped. Despite my confidence earlier in the evening, I realized I was absolutely exhausted. I would have to return to Lucy’s place soon or risk passing out right there under the tree, a position that I definitely didn't want to have to explain to the other members of Fairy Tail. 

Slowly...I removed my hands from my ears, allowing the sound of the night to rush back into my head. I wiped my eyes before leaving, trying to remember how to move my limbs. As I composed myself, I felt my magic starting to reach out. Now that I was less overwhelmed, it was looking for more emotional information. And to my horror, it found some. I wasn’t alone. 

I struggled to maintain my breathing. There was only one person, sitting a few yards off, perhaps on one of the benches that bordered the park. I scanned them, trying to figure out who it might be. Calm, watch full, tired, ready to act if need be. It could be anyone. 

I let my right hand drop to the ground, a natural movement, but once it made contact, I let my fingers search around, finally they closed around something rough and slightly damp. A tree branch. My only weapon. 

I closed my fingers around it. The person on the other side of the park had yet to react. They probably didn’t know I’d noticed them. I took several deep breaths, forcing myself to remain calm. Then I burst up from my position, ready to fight whoever it was. 

In the darkness the figures were hard to make out, but they stood slightly after I did. I gripped my branch. They were more than ready to fight now. 

The silhouette told me my enemy was male, and quite a bit bigger than me, but I would have to manage. 

He stepped closer, wary of me. 

I pulled my tree branch up above my shoulder like a baseball bat. As far as I could tell, the other was unarmed, and the branch would reach him before his fists reached me. 

“Calm down.” 

I froze. That voice…

“It’s just me.” 

He stepped closer, and I understood. It was Grey. I was unsure if this was better or worse than a stranger, and did not move. 

He walked closer to me, but I sensed he didn’t want to fight. I knew that he would have to bring his hands together to cast a spell, and for the time being they were both held up in surrender. 

I knew the appropriate response was to drop my weapon. But my fingers didn’t seem to want to release it. My hands were visibly shaking. I ran over options in my head. Now that I had been caught sneaking out, it might be better to get out of there as soon as possible. Grey had stopped walking, but he would be close enough to hit with the branch if I wanted to. If I hit him, could I make it to August before he regained consciousness? Where in the guild hall was August? How hard was Grey’s skull? I didn’t like my chances. 

A new concern came up. Where are the others? I did a quick scan, but I didn’t sense anyone else nearby. Whatever Grey was meaning to do, he was alone. For now at least. 

“How did you find me?” I asked, not lowering my branch. 

Grey stopped attempting to get closer to me. “I just saw you,” he said. 

I narrowed my eyes, but he was telling the truth. 

“Everyone is out looking for you.” 

“How did they know I left.” 

He gestured to my arm. 

I looked down carefully, not wanting to take my eyes off him for too long. Then I saw it. The lacrama bracelet circling my left wrist. How could I have forgotten? 

I looked up at Grey’s hands to see that he was also wearing one, the two bracelets must have communicated somehow when I got out of range, alerting the others to my disappearance. So they were all looking for me then. For how long? Would the others come? I scanned the perimeter again. There was still no one there. And Grey wasn’t lying when he said he had found me by chance, though I didn’t know how long he had been watching me. 

“We’re supposed to meet back up at Lucy’s in ten.” Grey said, “with or without you.” something about his tone said that the without me part was no longer an option. 

And if the others were looking now, I had no doubt that they would find me, even if I did manage to incapacitate Grey. 

My hands were still shaking, but I dropped the branch and looked at the ground. 

Grey took a tentative step toward me. I sensed that he was still anticipating an attack. But I wasn't going to give him one. I would have to face the consequences of my stupidity. It was my own fault I forgot about the bracelet. 

“So you’re coming back then.” 

I nodded. 

Grey let out a sigh. He had been expecting me to be more resistance. 

He didn’t move, perhaps because he wanted to talk, so I led the way, leaving him behind. 

After a moment of consideration, he appeared at my side. I wasn’t used to walking next to someone, and leaned forward so that a protective sheet of hair could create a curtain between us. 

“If you were going to run why did you stop there so long?” 

The question seemed to have come out of him without a reason, as I had not sensed him forming it. 

I wasn’t sure how I wanted to answer. I was a little offended that he would assume I was that stupid, but after forgetting about the bracelet I wasn’t so sure he was off the mark. 

“I wasn’t running.” I said quietly, though I sensed that he heard me. It took him a moment to respond, he hadn't been expecting an answer. 

“Then why did you leave.” 

“I wanted a walk.” 

This seemed to surprise him even more. 

“I wanted to be alone.” I amended. It felt somehow easier to talk, when we were walking alone in the cold empty streets, rather than cooperated up in Lucy's cheery apartment. “I was planning to come back before any of you woke.” 

I felt the chunks of my story clicking into place in Grey’s head. 

“How did you stay up like that?” he asked, “I've had those pills before and they won't leave you much choice but to go to sleep.” 

“I didn’t take them.” this seemed to win me a little chuckle. I looked up to see that Grey’s face was just as carefree as the sound of his laugh suggested. I didn’t understand. 

His sparkling eyes met my confused face. 

“Why is that funny?” I asked. 

“”You’re just unpredictable I guess.” 

I didn’t think this was much of an answer, but I wasn’t sure that anything he said was going to make sense to me, so I said nothing. 

Soon we made it back to Lucy’s and I noticed that the others were already standing outside, waiting for Grey’s return. I noticed the way that relief was watching over them when they saw us. 

“There you are!” Lucy ran over to us, thought she stopped a few feet away, looking over Grey. she wanted to know if there had been a fight to get me back. 

“She wasn't even trying to run,” Grey explained on my behalf, “she was going to come back before we woke up.” 

They glanced at me, as if to confirm the story, but I was too terrified to move. 

“Well as long as you’re both safe I guess,” Lucy said, unsurely returning to Erza. 

It took Erza a moment to answer, and when she did, I knew that her words didn't match what was swirling inside her head. “Yes I think so.” 

We returned to Lucy’s room, and Erza glared at me until I crawled back under the covers. I knew that Grey hadn’t told them that I hadn't taken the sleeping pills, but I stayed there and pretended to be in a deep slumber as if I had swallowed them. 

A few minutes passed and the others started to relax, assuming that I was asleep for the second time that night. 

“Where did you find her?” Lucy whispered. 

I was careful to keep my face neutral. 

“South gate park.” Grey answered. 

“What was she doing?” Erza asked. 

“Just…” he trailed off, and I felt his eyes on me. I prayed he really did think I was asleep. “Crying.” 

“Crying?” 

“But then she noticed me, and grabbed this stick…” he trailed off. Something was troubling him, though I couldn't be sure what. 

“I don’t think she knew it was me first.” 

“So she didn’t attack you?” Erza asked. 

“No…” 

His answer was weak, both Lucy and Erza knew there was more to the story. 

“But she didn’t drop the stick right away either.” Grey finished. “She was shaking, she must have been terrified.” 

They were all quiet. 

I resided the urge to roll my eyes. I hadn't been scared of him. But then...why was I shaking? I didn’t have an answer.


	35. THIRTY FIVE

*August's POV*

Needless to say, it was a rough night. I couldn't stop thinking about how things were going for Violet back at Lucy’s place. I knew that it couldn't be easy for her to be all alone with the fairies, but I also knew that it was the safest place for her. especially now that I had made contact with Takashi. But finally, after several hours, I had fallen asleep, even if only to wake to more problems. 

When I woke I was alone, lying on the mattress that had been dragged into the master’s office several days before. It disturbed me how quickly I had fallen into this new routine in the few days since Natsu brought Violet back. But I wasted no time before taking the mattress and leaning against the back wall where it would be out of the way before unlocking the door and making my way to the main room of the guild hall. 

As usual, the master was already there, or perhaps he had never left. It was hard to tell. As always, he was waiting for me near the bar, along with a disgruntled Natsu. 

Mirajane was also nearby, and they all looked up when I entered the room. I didn’t need to be an empath to read the expressions on their faces. 

“What’s wrong?” where the first words out of my mouth. 

The master set his jaw, and I came around to the customer side of the bar, getting as close to the master as I could while still staying away from Natsu. I noticed now that there was a sheet of paper sitting in front of him. A quick glance told me that it was a job request, just like all the others that were sent to the guild, or so I thought. 

“I needed to talk to you,” he said carefully. 

I had assumed as much. 

“About what?” I asked. I was aware that Mirajane and Natsu both leaned in to listen to what I was going to say. Perhaps they already knew that was going on. 

“Yesterday,” the master began, “When the young man from your guild called, you’re sure that he didn’t suspect you?” 

The question was worrisome, but I knew that in order to get the information I wanted I would have to answer it. 

“If he had known anything,” I said, “he would have boosted.” I was sure of it. Besides, if they knew what had really happened in the woods with Natsu, they already would have sent a scout to check things out, and no one had come yet. “Why?”

The master took a long breath before responding, I reminded myself to be patient. I had to seem normal to these people. Or as normal as I could manage considering the circumstances. 

Rather than a straightforward answer, the master handed me that job request that he had been staring at. 

I gave him a questioning glance before reading it. I felt my heart stop. 

“Who sent this?” I asked, skimming over it again to make sure I hadn't misread something. 

“There’s no name,” Mirajane said, appearing at the master’s shoulder, “just the address.” 

I re-read that portion of the request. “Hargeon?” I asked. That wasn’t near any Justice Valkyrie basses, but it could be a trick. 

“It came this morning.” Mirajane said, “I was about to put it on the wall with all the others when I noticed…” she trailed off, but I understood. 

“What should we do?” I asked. 

“It’s up to you I suppose,” the master said, “You and Violet.” 

I nodded. But I still didn't know what to do about it. Still, there was no use in separating until Vi returned anyway. I just had to wait until then. 

*Violet's POV*

It felt like forever, but finally the sun began to rise on the other side of Lucy’s curtains, and the others began to stir around me. After Grey had drug me back to the apartment, I had been careful to appear as though I were sleeping. The result was a little suspension from my guards, as well as an almost peaceful night. But all good things had to come to an end, and I knew I would soon be expected to open my eyes. 

I was careful to make sure that I was the last one up. I sat up from my blankets to indicate that I was awake, facing away from the main group, trying to think of what to do next. 

I realized that the others around me were gathering up their bedding and putting it away. I moved to do the same, crawling off my sleeping pad and rolling it up neatly. I prepared to stand and deposit it in the corner with the others when Grey appeared above me and took it out of my hands. 

I suppose that it would have been appropriate to thank him, but by the time the thought came to me it was already too late, Grey was gone. I figured it was just as well. With nothing else to do, I stood and wandered to the bathroom, taking care of my business while listening in to see if the others spoke now that I was out of the room. To my suprise, it was silent. 

I finished up in the bathroom and returned to the others. I started walking toward the table where we had eaten the day before, but had only just sat down in my old spot when Erza spoke up. 

“I was thinking we could head to the guild hall soon.” she said. 

I felt everyone's attention turn to me, as though I had a choice. 

“Okay.” The word felt too loud in the small space, though I knew that I had spoken much quieter than was necessary. 

“I can lend you some more clothes for now if you want,” Lucy offered, “and help you with your bandages.” 

“Okay.” 

I felt Lucy’s discomfort even though I couldn't see it. Though I didn’t know what kind of reaction she had been hoping I’d give. 

“Well if that’s the case I think I’ll head out early,” Grey said, standing. He must have not wanted to spend any more time with me than he had to. “Unless you guys need help,” he added as an afterthought. 

“We’ll manage.” Erza said. I sensed that she had meant it as a joke, but I wasn’t quite sure what she was meant to be implying. 

“Well I’ll meet you all back at the guild then.” 

The others bid Grey farewell, and a moment later I heard the front door open and close. 

In an instant the girls leapt into action. Lucy when her dresser and started pulling out clothing options while Erza retrieved the medical supplies and gestured for me to hold out my arm. 

This time I knew better than to reject her help. I knew it would be pointless, besides, the faster I could get out of here. The faster I could get to August. 

Once Erza was done re-wrapping my wounds, Lucy came to replace her, holding up several different outfits for my inspection. All of them covered far too little skin for my taste, but I appreciated her generosity. 

In the end, I selected a pair of shorts that only barely reached my mid thigh, and a short sleeved shirt that was an unassuming shade of blue. Once I changed, Lucy looked over me, frowning. 

“What’s wrong?” the words were a reaction, and had managed to escape my lips unchecked. 

Lucy had a moment of surprise that I had spoken to her, but when it passed, she seemed more relaxed than before. 

“Nothing’s wrong,” she assured me, “it’s just,” she gestured to my borrowed shirt. “It’s a crop top on me.” 

I looked down, the same was definitely not true now. It wasn’t hard to guess where the extra fabric was coming from, considering my microscopic chest size. Lucy seemed to come to the realization the same time I did, and looked up at me sheepishly. My silver tongue told me her instinct was to laugh, but she held back out of fear of upsetting me. 

“It’s okay.” I said. 

Again, confusion. 

“You can Laugh if you want.” I rephrased. “I think it’s funny too.” 

Realization flooded into Lucy, and I noticed the split second delay better what I sensed and what her expression showed. She was embarrassed now. 

“Sorry,” she said, thought her tone was light, “I guess nothing goes over your head huh? 

You would be surprised. 

Lucy seemed to savor the interaction, thought I wasn’t sure what there was to appreciate, then something popped into her head, and she leapt up enthusiastically. “Oh! I almost forgot!” 

She moved around me to the other side of the room, though I made no effort to turn and watch her. A moment later she returned with something in her hand. 

“I thought you might like this.” She held up a hair tie. “I noticed that your hair was always falling in front of your face, so I thought you might need something to keep it back.” 

So she had noticed then. But of course she hadn’t realized that I was doing it on purpose. I suppose it only made sense. Someone like Lucy would have no reason to hide their face. But how could I decline her offer without seeming rude? 

“I can put it in for you.” she offered. 

My mouth felt like it was full of cotton. Lucy walked to the other side of the room and returned with a hairbrush, pausing in front of me again, asking for permission. 

“I-you don’t have too-” 

“I don’t mind,” she insisted. And I knew she wasn’t lying. Not only did she not mind, she wanted to do it. She was excited to help me. A shudder slithered it’s way through my body. I didn’t want to say no. 

“Alright then.” 

I felt Lucy smile as I turned around and sat. she knelt behind me, bring the brush down on my scalp. I had never had someone else brush my hair before. It felt...nice. The gentle pull of my hair, the occasional brush of hands at my exposed neck. My body hadn’t forgotten the fear of vulnerability. I didn’t like the idea of having my back to a stranger. But it only seemed to enhance the experience. Not even the threat of Lucy’s fingers reading me was enough of a deterrent to pull away. I wanted to lean into it. 

“You’re good at this,” I said, though the truth was I had no point of reference. 

“Thanks,” Lucy said, running the brush through my hair again and sending chills all the way down my spine. “Actually this isn’t the first time I’ve brushed your hair.” 

This was news to me. 

“When you were unconscious before...I would do it.” 

The feeling I sensed in her now was painfully familiar. Bashfulness. 

“I didn’t know that.” I said, “Thank you.” 

This seemed to cheer her up a little.

Lucy's emotions seemed to be dependent on those around her. I wondered if my opening up was helping her relax thought osmosis. I hoped so. After all, she had been kind enough to help me even before I woke. She had no idea what to think of me then. And no hope that the gesture would be remembered, much less rewarded. This made her an anomaly to me, even if a welcome one. 

All too soon, Lucy finished, and I realized that my hair had been pulled into a high ponytail. I shook my head back and forth feeling the way it brushed the back of my neck. 

I had worn a ponytail before. But usually only for jobs, where hair could get in the way of my work. Having one now made my hands remember less peaceful scenarios, and my heart began to speed up as if anticipating a kill. But no such thing would happen now. Maybe not ever again. 

Erza then appeared from the kitchen, and I turned my eyes to the floor, already wishing I had declined Lucy’s offer to put my hair up. Erza’s gaze was far more intimidating without a shield. 

“Are you ready to go?” she asked.

I stared at the floor, waiting for Lucy to answer. She didn’t speak. I did a quick scan of the room. With a start I realized they were both waiting for an answer. My answer. Erza had been talking to me. 

I swallowed. How much time had passed since she’d spoken? Was it too late to respond. 

“Are you ready to go Violet?” Lucy asked. She had intended to help me out, not knowing that I had already realized my mistake on my own. But her question gave me the opportunity to answer without fear of making things more awkward than they already were, so I nodded and stood, following Erza out of the apartment, and back to Fairy Tail.


	36. THIRTY SIX

*Violet's POV*

The walk to the guild hall was silent, but not nearly as awkward as the day before. Though I hadn't slept that night, I knew that I was a little stronger. And my little midnight escapade had shown me just how much my body could take. I went as fast as I could without being in danger of overexerting myself, though this of course was still much slower than I would have liked to go, I knew it was better than the alternative. 

As we approached the guild hall I found myself getting nervous. I had managed to survive a night with three of the members, but could I face the rest? Lucy, Erza, and Grey had already known me before everything hit the fan, if anyone was going to be nice, it was them. I couldn't say the same for the others. I forced my feet to keep moving. The sooner I got in, the sooner I could get out. But even then, I could feel myself shaking. 

My only solace was the knowledge that August would be waiting inside. I hadn’t seen him since he’d talked to me briefly, but that had been under the master’s sharp eyes. We hadn’t had a proper conversation since the morning I left on the job with Natsu. I was looking forward to seeing him again. 

When we neared the door, Grey stepped forward to open it for me. I squeaked out a “Thank you,” as the four of us slipped into the building. I felt eyes on me, and the aura of the others, fear, curiosity, anger. Everything I had expected. But this time there was something else, I concentrated harder to figure out what it was. Pity. possibly for the three fairies that had to be my babysitters. 

I had hardly taken two steps into the guild hall when someone burst out of the crowd and wrapped his arms around me. After the initial shock of it, I relaxed. It was August. 

“Is everything okay?” he whispered in my ear.

“Yes.” 

“I’ll try to talk to you in private later, for now we’ll have to deal with the others.” 

“Okay.” 

He pulled away, smiling, and my magic told me that it wasn’t just for show. He was just as relieved to see me as I was him. 

“It’s good to see you.” August said. 

I nodded stiffly. The others were watching us. “I missed you too.” 

“I like your hair.” 

It took my moment to realize what he was talking about, then remembered my ponytail. 

“Lucy did it for me.” 

I hoped that the eavesdropping fairies would hear this. If Lucy was being tolerant, perhaps they would take the hint. 

“It looks good,” August said, turning to Lucy with the complaint. 

“Thanks!” 

August was quiet for a moment, and I sensed something less cheerful creeping into his mind. If we were alone, I would have asked him about it, but as we where, I didn't know if it was a safe topic to bring up in front of the fairies. Unfortunately I wasn’t the only one who noticed his change in mood. His expression had given him away. 

“Is there something wrong?” Erza asked on my behalf. 

“Not exactly,” August said, scratching the back of his neck. “But something is...I'll just show you.” he beckoned for us to follow him to the bar. I did so without hesitation, and the others soon followed. 

It wasn’t until we got to the bar that I stopped. August was leading us to where the master was sitting on the counter, one of the many job requests spread out in front of him. But that wasn’t my concern. 

A few chairs away was Natsu, eating while he pretended not to pay attention to me. I felt my heart rate accelerate. My burned arm seemed to itch harder, as if it knew how close it was to the source of the fire. August's hand brushed mine in a way that I knew couldn’t be an accident. He looked down at me, a question. 

I moved my eyes in the direction of Natsu. 

August understood immediately, and stood between us, hiding me from Natsu’s view. And him from mine. If the others noticed our silent exchange, they said nothing. 

“Did you tell her?” Master Makarov asked. 

My attention was pulled away from Natsu. I could sense from August and the master that something was important was brewing. 

“I thought it would be easier to show them.” August said. 

The master shrugged and gestured to the paper in front of him. My magic told me that he intended for me to pick it up, but when I didn’t move, Erza took the initiative, and read the paper out loud. 

“My brother and I require the assistance of someone who is able to read and manipulate other people’s emotions. We heard a rumor that there is a young mage at your guild with Silver Tongue magic. If you could please send her to the address below, we would be most appreciative.” 

She looked up, just as shocked as I was. Everyone was silent. I wondered if they were waiting for me to react. I didn’t know what to say. 

“How do they know that?” Grey asked, finally breaking the silence. 

“We don’t know,” August said, “It came in this morning with all the others.” 

“The only people that know you’re here are from your old guild.” Lucy said. 

“The address is in Hargon.” Erza said, still scanning over the request. “I thought your guild was up north.” 

“For now yes,” August said, referring to the other locations, “but there’s nothing in Hargon that’s related to it.” 

“Could be trying to trick you.” Grey said, “but why.” 

“I don’t think it’s Justice Valkyrie,” August said. 

No one anticipated this. 

“Who else would it be?” Lucy asked. 

“I don’t know,” August admitted, “but it’s not them. No one there knows what happened yet.” 

“But how can you be sure?” Erza asked. 

“Because I talked to them yesterday.” 

I had to remind myself to keep breathing. August explained how he had revived a communication lacrima from Takashi, and the conversation that transpired.

“That doesn’t mean he believed you.” Grey said, I knew his words were not meant to be unkind. It didn’t make me feel better. 

“He did.” August said, “This isn't his style. It’s not him.” 

I could tell the others where still unsure. But they didn’t know Takashi like we did. Like I did. 

“August is right,” I said, speaking up for the first time. “It’s not him.” 

August was relieved now. I wondered if I was the only one he had been trying to convince in the first place. 

“But if it’s not Takashi,” Lucy said, “Then who?” 

“I guess we’ll have to find out.” I said. 

“What?!” 

It appeared no one liked this plan. 

“Whoever sent this is trying to get me over there.” I said, “They want to talk to me.” 

The answer was clear to me. The only way to know what was going on was to accept the request and find out who had asked for me. 

“There’s no way.” 

“It’s too dangerous.” 

“We don’t know who’s asking.” 

Everyone was speaking at once, all encouraging me to change my mind. But there was one person that was silent. Someone who had been silent the entire time. The master was still sitting there on the counter. I knew that he agreed I should go. I forced myself to make eye contact with him, and we seemed to reach some kind of understanding. 

He held his hand up for silence. 

“I agree with Violet.” 

The others turned on him in an instant, but this only seemed to amuse him. 

“You’ll let me go.” it wasn’t a question, but he answered it nonetheless. 

“Yes.” 

I felt the other’s emotions shifted into near chaos. 

“But not alone.” he amended. 

My smirk disappeared. Of course I couldn't go alone. I wasn’t sure why I had expected anything different. 

“The three of you should go with her.” the master said nodding to himself as if everything checked out. 

“There’s four of us.” August pointed out. 

I swallowed. Everyone present knew that it was August who had been excluded from this mission. But neither one of us was going to let that happen. I knew that much at least. 

“You will not be going.” the master said, his gaze met August's. A challenge that I would not have been able to withstand. But my brother stared the wizard saint down like a bad puppy. 

“Yes I am.” 

I did a quick read of August's mental state, and felt my own anxiety spike. At this rate he was prepared to fight the master, a move that would bring certain death. I had to convince him otherwise. 

“We have to think of this logically.” the master said, apparently not aware of the severity of August's disobedience. “Takashi could contact you again at any moment. You have to be here to answer.” 

Understanding seeped through me, and I found myself begrudgingly agreeing with the old man. There was no way August could come with us. No matter how much I wanted it. No matter how easy it would be to escape with him as soon as we were away from the guild hall together. 

I took a deep breath and placed a hand on August's shoulder. He was not convinced. 

I swallowed hard, preparing my request carefully. “Sir…” my voice was barely above a whisper, but I felt everyone's eyes turn to me regardless. 

“What is this child?” 

I cringed at the implications of how he addressed me, but I would have to deal with them later. “Could August and I talk alone for a few minutes?” 

I read him carefully. First there was surprise, and then understanding, and then he spoke again, invitingly. “Use my office, take as much time as you need.” 

I knew that the others didn’t like this idea. I also was aware that the master’s office was in the middle of the building and had no windows. There was no way to escape from there. Perhaps that was why he had offered it. 

I gave the master a little nod before leading August behind the bar and to the room that I had only been to once before. I took in deep breaths and released them slowly, just like Takashi had taught me, as I tried to figure out how I was going to convince him to let me go on a job with the enemy.


	37. THIRTY SEVEN

*August's POV*

I followed Violet into the master’s office, and shut the door behind us, shutting off the babbling of the fairies outside. As soon as I was sure they couldn’t hear us, I turned and launched into a rant. 

“Okay, so here’s the plan, you pretend that we talked it out and it’s okay, and go, then I’ll break out and…” 

“August no,” she placed a hand on mine, allowing me to read her voluntarily, a rare occurrence. 

I stopped talking immediately . She was nervous, more than usual, but no more than could be expected. But she was also sure of herself. 

“You don’t want me to come?”

I hadn't even considered that. 

“It’s not that.” Violet said, pulling her hand away, “I do want you there. But what the master said makes sense. We can’t let Takashi find out that you were lying.” 

“But-” 

“I’ll be okay.” Violet said, but one look at her shaking hands told another story. 

“I spent the whole day with them before. They don’t want to hurt me. They don’t even hate me. I don’t understand it but...I think they’re just as confused as we are...so maybe, it will be okay.” 

I knew she was no longer just talking about the job. 

“You trust them.” I sighed. It was the worst possible scenario. 

Violet took a deep breath. She didn’t take this lightly. She had thought it over. I knew that. So when she nodded, it was all the more heartbreaking. They had managed to win her over. The fairies’ smiles and general friendliness had turned her against her very nature. She had truly grown to love them. And not only that, but she believed that they might one day return the sentiment. 

And she had no idea. 

“They don’t want to hurt us.” Violet said. 

My fears were confirmed. I ran scenarios in my head, wishing that I could line up her emotions in neat little grids like how I arranged information with my archive magic. 

“Just because they don’t want to hurt us doesn't mean they won't.” I said.

She sighed. She knew this. And yet it didn’t seem to matter. Did she even understand how deep she was digging herself? She was terrified of them, and I could think of no reason other than the obvious. 

But she was the one that had to go on the job. And she would be just as affected if Takashi found out I was lying. 

“Are you sure you’ll be okay with them?” I asked. 

Violet took in a shivering breath. 

“I don’t know,” she admitted, “but I want to find out who sent the job request, and if this is the only way to do it…it’s what I’ll do.” 

I let out a sigh. I knew she was right. And the master had been right, no matter how much I hated to admit it. 

“Then go.” the words came out colder than I wanted, but no colder than I felt. 

“You sure you’ll be okay here?” she asked. 

I could have laughed, Violet was asking me if I could handle a social situation? Now what was new. 

“I’ll manage.” I assured her. 

She nodded, and sighed, “Then I guess we should tell the master then.”

“I’ll do it.” I offered. 

“You should go find Wendy and get another check up before you go.” 

Violet shrank down. There was nothing she hated more than asking for help. 

“She was chomping at the bit to see you before you came in this morning.” I told her, “and she was lingering behind you when we were talking, waiting for you. When she sees you alone, she’ll probably come to you.” 

“Okay then.” Violet nodded, “that’s easier.” 

I smiled at her and then opened the door, taking a deep breath before stepping out into the noisy guild hall again. 

Violet slipped out behind me, and I noticed her head right for Wendy, who was waiting at a nearby table. I watched them interact and head for the infirmary before walking over to where the master and the others were waiting. 

They looked at me as I approached them, expecting an answer. “She’ll go with you.” I said, “I will stay here and wait to hear from Takashi.” 

The master nodded as though he had expected as much, and the others had mixed reactions, though I had no idea what they might indicate. Slowly, they all drifted away, taking the job request with them. I sat down at the bar near the master, waiting for my next set of orders, not really caring with the mouth they came from. 

*Violet's POV*

By some miracle, the healing session with Wendy was the last one I would need. I could tell that it had taken a lot out of her. But I also knew that I wanted to be strong enough to face whatever waited for me in Hargeon. 

“I’ve healed all of your injuries.” Wendy assured me, “but you should still be careful. Your muscles are probably still sore from how hard you worked then you-” 

She cut herself off abruptly, then looked up at me sheepishly. 

“Thank you for helping me.” I said, hoping that my gratitude would serve as an ample distraction. 

I felt Wendy’s fear of embarrassment ease, but it was replaced with something no less positive, the awkward gap left by the strangeness of me. Of being kind to me after what I had done. 

I stood and walked out of the infirmary without saying another word, as if doing so could spare her more embarrassment. As soon as I left the room they were waiting. 

All three of last night's bodyguards were lingering by the door. I passed into the hall before them, not wanting to be the first to speak. 

“August told us what you wanted to go on the job.” Erza said. 

I noticed that the others assumed that she hadn’t noticed the awkwardness that had settled over us. But I knew the truth. She knew what she was doing. She just didn’t care. 

“Do you want to leave now?” I asked, glad for Erza’s straightforward demeanor. 

The others seemed surprised I had spoken, but it was soon forgotten. It had been the plan all along, they hadn’t expected me to so readily accept it. 

“Sure, if you want to.” Lucy said, “I still have to pack thought.” 

So they were expecting this to be a longer job. I knew that those were common in this guild, thought August and I had never strayed far from Magnolia. 

“I’m ready to leave now,” Erza said. And I sensed something more coming, “So I can talk you back to your apartment and we can get what you need.” 

I took a deep breath. I hadn't been there since the morning of Natsu’s intended death. But Erza was right. I couldn't steal Lucy's clothes forever. I had to get my belongings back at some point. 

“Okay.” I said, even though I knew it hadn’t been a request. 

“We can meet at Lucy’s” Grey said, “It's on the way to the train station anyway.” 

So I wasn’t going to come back to the guild hall then. No time to say goodbye to August. I let out a deep breath. It was just as well. It wasn’t like we had anything to say to another anyway. 

“Are you ready to head out Violet?” Erza asked. 

I nodded my head, perhaps a little too fast, something that didn’t go Erza’s head. But she didn’t act on it. 

“Then let’s go.”


	38. THIRTY EIGHT

*Violet's POV*

For the second time in less than twenty four hours, I followed Erza out of the guild hall. I noticed the lacrima bracelet on my wrist blink when I stepped over the threshold and into the streets. I knew it must be connected to Erza somehow or it wouldn't let me leave, but I had no idea how it worked. I would have to try and figure it out if I wanted to get away from the others, but for the time being, I wasn't worried about it. 

I took a deep breath as we left the guild behind. For better or for worse, I would not return there for several days. As we walked I noticed that Erza had taken to walking at my side, rather than in front of me as she had the day before. I reached out with my magic, only to sense a light concern. Perhaps she did it because of how I had reacted before, going slower and slower until I stopped. I wondered if this was her way of setting the pace while keeping an eye on me. 

Experimentally, I speed up gradually before going back to my original pace just as slowly. Erza adjusted her stride to match mine perfectly, but her emotions remained unchanged. I knew it was unlikely she was doing it unconsciously, so it was a possibility that it wasn’t affecting her emotions. I found that many of her actions seemed to be the same way. It made it difficult for me to predict what she would do. 

This was not the first time I had run into someone who could hide from me. I was no stranger to people that closed themselves off emotionally. There were several members of Justice Valkyrie who I was unable to read. There were too many walls up, anger or bloodlust, or on the rare occasion grief, the dominant emotion overwhelming my senses and disallowing me from sensing anything else. 

But Erza’s case was different, I was sure of it. Still, that was the closest comparison I could make. Sometimes she seemed to wear her emotions on her sleeve, putting them out in the open for everyone, not just empaths. But there were other times when she seemed closed, not angry or sad, just...private. It perplexed me. Especially in a guild like Fairy Tail, where feelings were freely shared and celebrated. 

Unlike the others, she didn’t seem to think that our lack of conversation was awkward, and I knew I should have been grateful. I didn’t want to talk to them. I would even go so far as to say I dreaded it. But there was something about this silence, about the strangeness of Erza’s aura, that left my mind burning for answers. 

I wanted to know her. And not just as a target. I knew about her fighting style, and how many different sets of armor she had. But it wasn’t enough, there was some essential part of her that I was missing, the same part that was the difference between August and all the other people that I had interacted with. It wasn’t until that moment that I realized there had to be another piece missing. A hidden part of relationships that I had never known about, much less sought after. 

But Fairy Tail knew about it. Erza knew about it. If I asked...would she tell me? 

“Here we are.” 

I looked up from the paving stones to see that we were standing in front of my apartment. I must have been walking faster than I had the day before. 

Erza stepped forward without waiting for a response, my magic told me she didn’t expect one. She led the way to our apartment without needing direction. I assumed August or the master must have filled her in while I was in the infirmary. My suspicion was confirmed when she pulled a key out of her pocket, it was August’s I knew, since mine had been lost in the aftermath of the fight with Natsu. 

She opened the door and walked in, looking around at the bare walls and sparse furnishings. I was reminded of Lucy’s apartment, only a little ways down the road, and how different her space looked from ours. A little pang came from the back of my heart. If I had known that was what apartments were supposed to be like then I might have tried to decorate a little more. I had been so caught up in playing house with August, I may have even enjoyed it. 

“Which one is your room?” 

The question was stiff, but my magic told me that she was trying to start a conversation. She seemed to be holding on to this intention with all of her mind, desperately trying not to think about anything else. Was she trying to make sure I understood? Did she know that I noticed she was straining? Perhaps she was conducting an experiment of her own. As soon as I realized this I decided I didn’t want to give her the proper result, and turned away, pointing to my bedroom door rather than using my voice. 

Even so, Erza noticed how long it had taken for me to formulate a reaction, she knew I had gotten her message, and also knew that I had ignored it. This seemed to amuse her, further confusing me. 

I walked into my room and pulled a backpack out from under the bed. Erza followed me and stood in the doorway as I shoved clothes and other things inside. I was careful to keep close tabs on her with my magic, not sure what she was trying to do. She was thoughtful, perhaps considering how next to trip me up. I didn’t want to dance to her tune, but I was also curious of what she was trying to achieve, and I knew that a good way to find out would be to play along and see where it took me. 

Slowly, Erza came to a decision, but I spoke before she could act on it, beating her at her own game. 

“I don’t want help.” I said. 

The words startled her a little. I got a cruel kind of satisfaction out of it, having predicted her move before she made it. 

“How did you know I was going to offer?” she asked, “I hadn’t even moved yet.” 

I hadn’t turned around, and thus had no way of knowing this. I knew she knew that too. 

“I read you.” I said, slowing down the packing process, wanting to draw out the conversation as long as possible. 

“Empaths can only read emotions.'' There was no distrust in her now, only desire for knowledge. 

“That’s true,” I said, surprised as I realized I had never had the opportunity to describe my process to anyone before. “But emotions can tell a lot, if you know how to read them.” 

She said nothing but I sensed she wanted more. 

“First you were thoughtful,” I said, “about what, I don't know, but it doesn't really matter, then it changed, you were weighing something in your mind, pity then denial, and concern. Both for me. You didn’t want to make me think you felt sorry for me, but you still wanted to help. Then your mind cleared, you had made a decision.” 

Erza was silent for a moment, talking it all in. I couldn't be sure, but I had a growing suspicion that it wasn’t just the information that was taking her time to process. I had just spoken to her. In full sentences, and with little prompting. I could hardly believe it myself. But after so many days of nods and one word answers, I was desperate for human interaction. I hadn’t known until then I had been craving it, perhaps for longer than I knew. 

“But how did you know what I decided?” 

I paused in my packing. Erza had understood what I said. I was sure of it, but then why was she asking a question I had just answered. 

“What?” 

“You said, I don’t need help.” Erza said, “You knew which one I chose. Can emotions tell you that?” 

I sensed a trick, but my lips moved before my mind did. 

“No. usually I have to assume.” 

“Then how did you know?” 

“Concern was stronger when you were trying to decide,” I said, “it was bound to win over.” 

She wasn’t satisfied. “But how could you be sure?” 

The questions were coming into rapid fire now. Faster and faster. There wasn’t time to go over my responses. But I didn’t back down. I wanted to answer. I wanted to keep the conversation going. 

“I just knew.” 

“But how,” Erza asked, “Why would I help you?” 

“Because you’re in Fairy Tail.” 

The words slid out of my mouth so casually, anyone else wouldn’t have known that it was the first unfiltered thing to pass though my lips since I had been assigned this job. As it was, my words surprised us both. They seemed to echo in silence. 

Because you’re in Fairy Tail. Because you’re in Fairy Tail. Because you’re in Fairy Tail. 

I couldn't be free of them. 

Erza’s mind was turning a million miles a minute, too distracted to put up walls against me. I leaned forward, attempting to bring my hair down to hide my shame, but of course it didn’t fall, it was still in Lucy’s ponytail. Without my hair to shield me, I used my hands instead, pressing my face into them before I had time to remember that Erza could see me.

Her calculations stopped, concluded or paused, I couldn’t be sure, all of her attention was on me. I needed to put my hands down. I needed to sit up. I had to act normal. But the only moment my body made was the tremors that ran through my arms and into my shoulders before chasing each other down my spine. 

“Violet?” 

I didn’t know how to answer. Move? Speak? Did I know how? I wasn’t sure if I even had a mouth.

“I didn’t mean to upset you.” 

And I sensed something new in her. Not empty guilt, but a kind of responsibility. She had pressed me on purpose. She had wanted me to snap. 

“I wanted to know what you were really thinking.” she said. “I’m sorry.” 

And I knew that she meant it. She was sorry that she had brought me distress, but she was not sorry for the action itself. The information she gained was important to her. It had been worth it. What had she deducted from my response? I had only let five words slip, and somehow she had learned something about me that she hadn’t known before. What was it?

She considered putting an arm on my shoulder, and then thought better of it, remembering my aversion to touch. And it was this, her assumption that I would not want to be confronted, was what allowed an audible sob to pass through my lips for the first time in many years.


	39. THIRTY NINE

*Violet's POV*

I felt that the world was ending. I had survived countless missions, even an encounter with Natsu Dragneel. I had survived a night alone with three enemies. And now I was going to die here in my apartment. The embarrassment of crying aloud under Erza’s gaze was going to rip it’s way out of my body and crush me. 

I had always been so careful. Years of training myself to hide my tears. Hide my weakness. It was a necessity at Justice VALKYRIE. It was a requirement. And now...for the third time in twenty four hours I was crying in front of a member of Fairy Tail. 

Erza stood above me silently, watching as sobs were torn from my body. Her confusion cut through my shame, reminding me that she had no idea what had set me off. She had no idea what was wrong with me. But then...did I? The tears had started when she reached to comfort me, only to pull away on her own accord. 

And I had realized then that I didn't want her to pull away. I had a flash of memories of similar movements from August, or Takashi or other helping hands. And Erza had reached, just as they had. And then she pulled away. 

And I knew from the moment her hand retracted that I wanted her to help me, while simultaneously knowing that it was wrong. I did not deserve help from Erza. I did not deserve help from any of them. To desire comfort was to give in to my weakness. 

And not only had I come to this realization, but I haven't received the touch that I had craved. I was simultaneously desperate and guilty, and finding no relief in either inverse experience. 

Erza waited while I cried, having decided not to disturb me. I pulled myself together as quickly as I could. There was a half packed bag in front of me, and more Faries on the way to escort me to Hargeon. I didn’t have time to fall apart. 

I took a long, shuddering breath and wiped my nose on the back of my hand. Erza seemed to notice that my episode was over, and shifted behind me. I straightened up and shoved a few more things into the bag before standing. Still I did not turn to face her. 

There was a moment's hesitation, and then Erza reached forward and lifted the bag for me. I was about to protest when she spoke. 

“You didn’t pack any weapons.” 

My mouth opened, though I didn’t make the mistake of looking at her. Wasn’t the point of all this that I couldn't have weapons? Didn’t they want me to be as helpless as possible? 

Despite not hearing a response, Erza continued. “We don’t know who sent the job request. It might get dangerous. You should be able to hold your own.” 

My head was still buzzing from the aftermath of my latest mental breakdown, this on top of it was too strange. Too wrong. 

“You do have more here don’t you?”

Her first direct question. There was no way for the conversation to move on unless I answered. 

I nodded. 

“Then get what you need.” 

I walked to my bed and reached under the mattress, retrieving a spare belt and sheath, as my first had been lost in the woods. Then I pulled up the loose floorboard where I had hiden many of my less-than-legal belongings. 

I squatted and reached in, pulling out what I wanted and solving them into pockets. The clothes I had borrowed from Lucy weren’t ideal for hiding weapons, but I made it work. 

Something in Erza’s aura told me that the rest of my entourage might not know about her little amendment to the terms of the job, but I didn’t question her. I wanted my weapons, even if I wasn’t likely to use them. 

I hid my usual amount of weapons on my person before shoving a few more into my bag. Slowly, I stood, careful to keep my back to Erza. 

“Ready?” 

I nodded, making sure that the moment was enough to register even though she was behind me. I lifted my bag onto the bed before zipping and shouldering it. 

“Good,” Erza said, “now we can go get some breakfast!” 

Breakfast? My magic told me that it had been her plan all along, she had been looking forward to it...but I didn't understand. It had slipped my mind that I hadn’t eaten, I was so used to missing meals on jobs. I guessed it only made sense that the same wouldn't be true in Fairy Tail. 

“Where do you want to go?” she asked. 

I took a deep breath before answering. I had been able to talk to her openly before the job with Natsu. I had to act like nothing had changed. 

“I don’t know.” I said, “I didn’t realize we were going.” 

“Oh right!” Erza said, “We walked about it when you were in the infirmary, we all agreed to eat before meeting up at Lucy’s.” 

She was lying. I was sure of it. Another one of her stupid tests perhaps. But I knew there was still plenty of time before we were meant to rendezvous with the others, so I knew it didn’t really matter. Lie or not, there was no way I could decline. But still there was the question. Why? 

“I don’t care where we go.” I said, trying to get things moving along. I didn’t have any money on me anyway. August kept it all on him just in case he had to make a quick get away. But I would sit with Erza wherever she went. It wasn’t like I had a choice. 

“You sure?” she asked. 

“I don’t know Magnolia that well.” I said, I didn’t want to bring up the money thing in case she made us go all the way back to the guild hall. 

“Then I guess I’ll pick this time.” 

She said it was like there was going to be a next time. Definitely not a good sign. But at least now all I had to do was follow her lead.


	40. FORTY

*August's POV*

“Absolutely not.” 

It was the first time I had ever disagreed with the master. 

“You have made your reservations clear.” he said calmly. “But my point still stands. I’m not changing my mind.” 

“You’re making a mistake.” I had to convince him, find some way to tell him he was wrong. I couldn't let this happen. 

“Violet will be safe.” he said, “There are no risks and several good consequences.” 

“You don’t understand what it’s like for her.” I argued. “You can’t do this.” 

He looked at me for a long time, and then shook his head. “I’m sorry.” he said, “but this is what's best.” 

~~~

Erza led the way out of the apartment and to a cute little restaurant a few blocks away. It was a different form of the first café she had taken me to, though it had the same feel to it, relaxed, cute, soothing. Not something I would immediately associate with Titania Erza. 

A waitress came to greet us and handed over menus. Erza picked hers up and began scanning through it. I didn’t move. No reason to look at what I couldn't have. Erza caught on almost immediately. 

“Aren’t you getting anything?” she asked. 

“I’m not hungry.” I said, A lie I was well versed in. 

Erza frowned. “You might as well eat.” she said, “it’s a long way between here and Hageon. Besides, it’s my treat.” 

So she had been planning to pay all along then. Still, it didn’t change much. I picked up the menus just to satisfy her. Soon the waitress returned. She looked at me first. “Just hot water please.” 

She nodded and wrote it down. I looked at my lap to insure Erza and didn’t know I’d noticed her glare. 

“I’ll have stacks of chocolate buttermilk pancakes.” she said. 

The most expensive thing on the menu. Of course. 

“Coming right up.” the waitress gave a little bow before scurrying back to the kitchen. 

“I’m not hungry.” I repeated. 

“You have to eat.” 

“I can’t pay you back.” I said. 

“I don’t expect you to.” 

But why not? 

I was too emotionally exhausted to make sense of Erza’s intentions, much less argue with them. But other than her insistence on paying for my meal, she didn’t seem all that interested in talking. Perhaps this was her way of allowing me to recharge before meeting the others and heading to Hargeon. Either way, I silently thanked her for it. 

The silence was nice, but it was becoming clear to me that the thing I really needed was sleep. I had been confident in staying up the night before, and didn't regret it. But there were consequences to going without rest. Already I could feel myself thinking slower. Moving slower. It didn’t matter much now, but if things got hot on the job, my drowsiness would become problematic fast. There was always the train ride. The movement would make the sleep too light for nightmares. It wasn’t the best option, but it was all I had. I was going to take it. 

The café’s waitress came and went, and I ate my food without further prompting from Erza. As soon as I took a bite of the pancakes, I understood why she liked them so much, but I did my best to keep my delight to myself. I wasn’t here to have tea parties. 

Soon enough, both of us had finished, and Erza informed me it was time to meet up with the others. She exited first and then I followed, heading out into the bright sunshine. 

After only a few minutes of walking we arrived in front of Lucy's building. Erza didn’t hesitate before entering the building and walking up to the apartment. I followed behind her carefully. 

Erza knocked on the door twice. There was no answer. I reached out with my magic, but I didn’t sense anyone inside. “Looks like we’re the first ones here.” Erza said. 

I was about to assure her that I didn’t mind waiting when she tried the handle. It was locked of course. I wondered why she had bothered. She didn’t seem impatient. In fact it was as though this was perfectly normal for her. 

“Step back.” Erza ordered. 

Not knowing what else to do, I obeyed. 

She held up her hand and summoned a dull looking short sword. Before I could even start to wonder what she was planning to do with it, she shoved it into the crack in the door below the handle, moving it up to trick the lock. A moment later the door was open. 

Erza stared at me, daring me to question her. I said nothing and walked into the empty apartment. I wasn’t sure what disturbed me more, the fact that she had just done it for the fact that she had clearly done it before. 

Not knowing where else to go, I made my way to the table that I had sat at the day before. Erza did the same, and we waited in a comfortable silence. I wondered if this was normal for her. I guessed that most of the other people she interacted with would be put off but her quietness. I found it refreshing. When I heard a key in the door a few minutes later I was almost disappointed. 

Erza stood and went to greet the others. I stayed where I was, out of view of the door, I assumed Lucy might have some things she needed to grab before leaving. No point in moving until I was sure I had somewhere to go. 

Erza chatted with Grey and Lucy in the hall, I heard the bathroom door slide open then closed, someone clustering around in the kitchen. I didn't move. I I was trying to prepare myself for the next few days. I’d thought I had been isolated from August last night. It would be nothing compared to how far I would be from him soon. 

Soon the others started talking about leaving for real, and I stood, slowly making my way through the room to where the doorway was. One more step and they would be able to see me. I took a deep breath. 

It was released as gasp when I sensed two more people on the other side of the door. A moment later they knocked. The others answered, opening the door, then Lucy spoke. “Happy? Natsu?”


	41. FORTY ONE

*Violet's POV*

I had to remind myself to breathe. We had agreed that it would just be the four of us. I had been sure of it. Why were Happy and Natsu here? I took a step back, shrinking away from the doorway that would lead me back to the others. Back to him. 

I did my best to quel my rising panic, trying to distract myself by securing a read on the others. Confused, some concerned, hovering on the border of annoyance. They hadn’t known he would be coming either. 

It was Grey who spoke first. 

“What do you think you’re doing here?” I knew that the two of them weren't exactly best friends, but I had never heard Grey so hostile before. Not even toward me. It sent a shiver down my spine to think that the first time I’d heard him truly angry was because of one of his real guild mates, and not me. 

It was Happy that answered, “The master sent us here.” 

It wasn’t a lie, but he had said it defensively, as though there was something to be guilty about. Perhaps the cat did have some idea of the consequences of coming near me. 

I tried to get a read on Natsu, figure out what his thoughts were, but everything was overshadowed by one emotion, one drive. Determination was drowning out everything else. He wanted to come. For him, the master’s blessing was just an added bonus. Definitely not good for me. 

“Do you have any idea what she’s like now?” Grey asked. He was still opposed to the idea, but the mention of the master had caused much of his resolve to crumble. He trusted the old man too much. 

Lucy was torn. She knew I didn’t like it. But she trusted Natsu. In her mind there was no reason to fear him. Despite her good nature, or maybe even because of it, I knew she would not be coming to my aid. 

“Gramps told me to come.” Natsu said, “So I’m coming.” 

Immediately I felt Erza being won over. If she was on board then I was screwed. It was over. 

“You can’t just come storming in here with out-” 

“Grey,” Erza said. He stopped talking immediately. “The master knows what he’s doing. If he sent Natsu then he had a reason.” 

Grey let out a deep breath, then felt silent. And so my last defender had fallen. 

I sank to the floor. 

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Lucy asked. 

My silver tongue told me she didn’t plan to fight it. She was only asking to calm her own anxieties. 

“I got along with her just fine before.” Natsu said. “Why not now?” 

That comment made everyone uneasy, most of all me. Everything before had been a lie. He hadn’t gotten along with me. He had been friends with the idea of me. The idea of a girl who wanted to join Fairy tail because she had nowhere else to run. That’s why they had all liked me in the first place. Because on that basis, we were the same. 

But it was all a lie. 

I hadn’t come to the guild in search of refuge. I had come to destroy it. I had done more than betray them when I attacked Natsu. I had shattered the entire idea of the guild, tainted it at its most sacred of levels. And it didn’t matter how many mercy games Natsu and the others played. What I did could never be fixed. 

“You haven’t seen her since she came back.” Lucy said, almost whispering now. “She was reserved before but now…” 

“And I know it’s going to be worse with you here.” Grey jumped in. 

I wanted to tell myself that wasn’t true. I wasn’t stupid enough to think that any of them were going to lay a hand on me, not even Natsu. Not while I was under the master’s protection. Not while I still bore their guild mark. 

They would not physically harm me. 

I knew that. 

But my body remembered the injuries that it had only just been healed of. My weight shifted from side to side on it’s own, preparing to kill. Or run. Or both. As if it knew that the fists which had hurt it were waiting on the other side of that wall. 

I couldn't help but tremble. 

But it wasn’t just my body that remembered Natsu. Though it currently enhanced the experience. I could still feel the heat on my face, knowing that with one wrong move it would be the last thing I felt. My back acted as though it could still feel the way it pressed into the tree bark when he sent me sprawling back. I could hear the snap of breaking bones in my arm. And the way my heart sank when I realized for the first time in my life. I am going to lose. And then, another thought, somehow less terrifying but no less final. I am going to die here. 

But even then I knew. Of all the places to die, perhaps that forest wouldn't have been the worst. I had lived a life of adventure. A life worth of fear and awe. I had killed ninety nine people. I had saved them from this life. And now it was simply my turn. So why not there, in that forest? Why not at the hands of someone I had betrayed? Someone as powerful as he, who had been my first defeat. It was right. It was just. I was being freed. 

That’s what they had told me. 

And then it was ripped away. The promise of death was pulled back as the mask left my face. Leaving only humiliation. A stirring in my heart that was deeper than the shame. Something new. A weakness that I had felt in others but never in myself. 

All that power. The fire of battle, suddenly smothered, and with what I had no idea. My target looked down at me, and did not flinch away. I had failed to kill him. He had chosen to let me live. 

That was why I feared Natsu Dragneel. 

Not because he could kill me. Not because he almost did. But because I knew he wouldn't. Even if I deserved it. And after two days of avoiding him. My game of hide and seek had come to an end. Ready or not, he was coming for me, even if he didn’t know it. 

“I won't try to talk to her if she doesn't want to talk to me.” Natsu said. “It‘ll be like I’m not even there.” 

All parties knew that wasn’t good enough. But we also knew it didn't matter. Several heart beats passed before Lucy spoke up. 

“I’ll go tell Violet.” 

I prepared myself for her presence, trying to close my heart in an attempt to keep my face under control. My brain pulled up memories that I had not conquered. The feeling of her gentle fingers at the nape of my neck. They way she smiled and resisted the urge to flinch away. I pushed them down. Lucy was not my friend. 

At first she walked right past me, probably assuming I would be at the table. I said nothing as she turned in a full circle around the room, and trained my eyes on the floor as soon as she came to face me. 

She walked closer and crouched at my side. Her face would have been less than a foot for mine if I attempted to look up. “We’re gonna head out now.” 

Her breath smelled like strawberries. 

I closed my eyes, hoping she took it for an indication that I had heard her, and tried to remember how to speak. 

“Okay.”

But I couldn't force myself to stand. 

“Before you go in there,” she said, “you should know.” 

“I already do.” I said. 

She blinked, then, “Right.” 

She knew I would have been able to hear them from the other room. A normal person would have made themselves known. Perhaps that’s what I should have done. 

“I know this must be hard for you.” she said, “but he’ll stay away. If he doesn't, Grey and Erza will kill him.” 

My stomach twisted at the word choice. 

Immediately she realized her mistake, but she didn’t back down. “Besides, it’s only a few minutes from here to the train station, and then he’ll be practically useless all the way to Hargeon.” 

The joke itself fell flat, but her effort reassured me. I gave a little nod and got to my feet, taking comfort in the feeling of the hidden weapons shifting under my borrowed clothing. 

Lucy led the way out of the room, checking over her shoulder more often than was necessary, I followed, keeping my eyes on the floor. I knew they would be looking at me, but my head was too full of noise to hear what they were feeling. 

The only way to get out of this would be to get it over with. And that’s what I was going to have to do.


	42. FORTY TWO

*Violet's POV*

I walked ahead of the rest of the group, following closely behind Lucy, using my magic to keep tabs on the other’s behind me. Grey and Erza were walking on either side of Natsu and Happy, as if ready to reach out and grab them at any given moment. It was as though they had been sent to be Natsu’s bodyguards rather than mine. 

As always, Natsu himself was hard to read, but as far as I could tell he didn’t mind the argentments, assuming he noticed them at all. Perhaps he had been expecting something like this after all. 

Happy on the other hand was a little more nervous. The sound of his wing beats made me think he must have been darting from side to side. I could tell that he wasn’t used to being so unsure, but I didn’t know the cause of his angisty. Me perhaps, or the others, or maybe it was just the situation itself. I wasn’t the only one thinking it might have been better if the two of them had stayed home. 

Finally, we neared the train station. I lingered behind the others while they bought tickets, letting out a quiet thank you then Erza pressed one into my hand. I said nothing as we boarded the train. 

As soon as I walked onto the car I realised that the compartments only held four people. Two of us were going to end up alone. Lucy had led the way, followed by Grey then me and Erza. Natsu and Happy took up the rear, the frommer complaining about motion sickness loud enough to turn the heads of strangers around us. 

I didn’t want to deal with any of them. 

Lucy settled into a compamermet about half way down the train car with such ease that I wondered if it was her usual seat. I already knew that the group was going to get split up, and I was too tired to deal with making a decision. 

I waited until Grey had joined Lucy, and then walked farther down the car, selecting an empty area just out of earshot of the others. I knew that it was unrealistic to think that I would be left alone. They were there to guard me after all. But this way I didn’t have to deal with the awkwardness, they could work out who would and won't join me on their own. 

I knew that they wouldn't send Natsu or Happy. But, as far as the others were concerned I figured it was anyone’s game. Lucy was nice, Erza didn’t mind my silence, and Grey had been the one to drag me back to Lucy’s the night before. 

I found that I didn’t even care who they picked. I was planning on napping anyway. Or anticipating may have been a more fitting word, since I wasn’t sure my body was going to give me much of a choice in the matter. 

“Is this seat taken?” 

The voice nearly made my jump out of my skin. I had been expecting one of the fairies to come over, but when I looked up I saw a stranger. Immediately I started to notice red flags. The man was in his early twenties, and dressed to fashionably to not be in first class. Not to mention there were plenty of open seats around me, including across from me in the same compartment. But he was indicating to the one right next to me. 

I mentaly cursed myself for not taking the aisle seat, cutting off easy access. But I had been assuming that I was leaving it open for one of the fairies to settle into unobtrusively, not for some stranger to take advantage of. 

“It’s taken,” I said coldly. 

I was hoping that he would just go away, but what my magic told me was not reassuring. 

“Come on,” he said, “Don’t be like that.” 

Why did this have to happen to me? I had been hoping for an easy ride before the stress and uncertainty of the upcoming job. 

“It’s not right for a petty little girl like you to be traveling alone.” 

I became acutely aware of the dagger that was tucked into my belt. If the man tried anything he would be dead in an instant. If I really were alone, I could make it off the train without being seen. If I weren’t with Fairy Tail then the man might have been dead already. But this time, all I could do was hold my tongue. 

“I’ll stay here,” he stepped forward, parearping to sit next to me. “Help keep you safe.” 

I was searching for some way to get rid of him when someone else spoke. “Are we gonna have a problem?” 

Grey. I never realised I would be so happy to hear his voice. 

The man stiffened imdeiatly. He was quite a bit taller than Grey, but I didn’t sence any magic from him. If it came to a fight, Grey would win in by a landslide. 

“Back off,” Grey ordered, giveing the man an icy glare. 

The stranger may have been a creep but aprently he wasn’t stupid. He backed up with hands in the air. “Sorry I didn’t realize you had eyes on her first,” he spat, “but let me know if you want to share.” 

As soon as the words were out of his mouth the man realized he’d made a mistake. I had never seen Grey so angry before. It was as though his surge of emotion was strong enough to infect everyone, not just the ones with empathic abilities. “I said back off.” 

The man didn’t need to be told again, he continued itching back until he backed into the door at the end of the car, only breaking eye contact when he ducked though it and out of sight. 

“Is everything okay over there?” I heard Erza call from behind me. 

“It is now,” Grey said back. 

He turned to face me, and I looked away just in time to avoid his gaze. This seemed to frustrate him, but he said nothing as he took the seat next to me. 

The only thing I could think about was how piercing his eyes had become when he was staring down the man. What was how he treated all his enemies? Was that what he really thought about me? I wasn’t sure I wanted to know. 

Grey let out a deep breath, as if dispeling something fowl from his system. “Are you good?” he asked. 

I kept my eyes on the floor, expecting a trap. “I’m fine.” 

“I hate creeps like that guy.” 

And I knew it was true. 

“I could have handled him.” 

Grey nodded, he had understood that from the beginning. “Just saving you some trouble.” 

So it was pure chivalry then. I supposed I didn’t care one way or another. I was glad I didn’t have to make a scene, even if Grey had only taken my place on the hot seat. 

I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to respond, so I opted not to. It was rude perhaps but I doubted Grey was expecting anything different. We had a few hours until we made it to Hargeon, and I needed all of them to overthink.


	43. FORTY THREE

*Violet's POV*

The train bumped along cheerfully, taking me and my body guards towards the answer to the job request mystery. Most of the fairies were hidden from my view, far enough back that I could only hear them by straining, and even then most of the conversation was obscured by Natsu’s pathetic moans every time we hit a bump. 

Grey was sitting next to me, slouching in the aisle seat, I felt him looking at me from time to time. I kept my eyes straight ahead, staring at the bottom of the seats in front of me. I didn’t want to talk to him. 

I had planned to sleep on the train, but now that I was actually here, I wasn’t sure I could force myself to do it. This wasn’t like when I napped on the way to jobs with August at my side. The fairies were not my friends, and even though I knew in theory that they probably wouldn’t attack me, I didn’t like the idea of being vulnerable around them. 

To sleep would mean letting my guard down. To curl up against the cool window would expose my back to Grey, my enemy. It was as though my body itself was opposed to the idea. 

I was using my silver tongue to keep close tabs on Grey, mostly out of boredom. Every few minutes or so, he would glance over at me, hoping I would meet his eye, and then give up and glare at the floor. 

Just as it had the night before, I could feel impatience stirring inside him, if I didn't talk to him soon it was going to burst, and he would be the first to speak. I wasn’t sure which option I hated more. 

When he looked over to me for what must have been the fifth time, a sigh escaped my lips, and I leaned forward, hiding my face in my hands. As I did so, Lucy’s ponytail slipped across my neck, a reminder of her kindness the morning before. I had been able to talk to her then. And even Ezra hadn't seemed quite as scary when we had gone to my apartment. Why was Grey any different? 

I was pulled out of my thoughts when I felt a change in the fairy next to me, a sudden repulsion. My immediate assumption was that the creep from before was back, and I looked up before thinking logically. 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. 

When my eyes found Grey’s I noticed that he was frozen, his arm half extended to touch me. I immediately shrank back. What was his problem? 

Upon seeing my reaction, Grey retraced his arm sheepishly and mumbled out an apology. But it didn’t answer my question. If no one was there, then why his sudden discomfort?

“What’s wrong?” I repeated, a little louder this time. 

Grey’s uncomfortableness increased. “I didn’t mean to touch you.” he said, “I just…” 

It was my turn to grow impatient. “Spit it out.” 

My abruptness startled him, thought not in a bad way. A little smirk inched its way across his face, but then retracted just as fast when he realized I wasn’t going to let it go. 

He took a deep breath, accepting defeat. 

“I saw the scars on your back.” 

My heart dropped like a stone, shattering as it hit my stomach before melting away into bile. I was wearing Lucy’s shirt. Of course it wasn’t enough enough to cover them. And with my hair tied up, unable to hide my neck..

I swallowed hard. If Grey had seen them, that meant Lucy must have to. As well as Erza. and no one had told me. I tried my best not to hate them for it.

August would have warned me. August would have told me and then I could have hidden them. but the fairies had let me go out without a way to shield myself.

Grey seemed to have realized his mistake, and quickly backpedaled. “I mean it’s no big deal.” he said, “must have been some fight.” 

His attempt at comforting me fell flat. But he kept on digging himself deeper. 

“Look,” he pushed a hand up under his bangs, exposing the remnant of what must have been a nasty gash on his forehead. “And I’ve got plenty more where that came from. All of us do. You should see that pyro maniac topless, he’s got more scars than skin.” 

I was honored that he was trying too hard to cheer me up. But none of it mattered. 

“You can’t lie to an empath, Grey.” 

Confusion. Guilt. Self assurance. 

“I’m not.” 

“I know what you felt when you saw them.” I said, looking away again. “We both know that my scars didn’t come from any fight.” 

Anger. 

But not for me. 

And I realized now that his light hearted banter hadn't just been for my sake. Grey had been trying to comfort himself as well. He wanted to believe that the whip marks on my back had been from some fight or maybe a freak accident. But deep down he knew what I knew. My scars were not the same as his. 

“Your guild…” he said, “Justice Valkyrie… they did this.” 

It wasn’t a question. 

“Why?” 

I reached out to pull Lucy’s shirt up, as if the thin fabric could protect me from Grey’s interrogation. 

“I was late.” I shrugged. “I lost a practice battle, I took too long on a mission.” 

There were plenty of reasons. There had been a time when I thought they were good ones. That was before I had seen Fairy Tail. A guild where the members picked their jobs, and could come and go as they pleased without fear of consequences. 

When I first arrived I had told myself that light guilds where the outliers. Obviously our ways were superior. But it was clear that Grey wouldn't agree. And or the first time, I was beginning to wonder if even I did. 

I felt his eyes on me again. Glaring at the tips of the long scars peeking out from under my shirt. Every time he looked at them a new cut of rage seemed to open in his heart. 

“Sorry.” I mumbled, reaching for the elastic band that was holding my hair up. “I can hide them.” 

He said nothing, but just before my finger touched the base of the pony tail, a hand shot up and circled my wrist. Freezing me in place. 

I didn’t pull away, not at first. Perhaps Grey would calm down if he read me. Then he could know that it really wasn’t a big deal. But after a few seconds he dropped my hand in disgust. I didn’t know what it meant, and I was far too scared to ask him, so I turned away, leaning me head against the window. 

“I’m going to take a nap.” I announced. 

He didn’t answer.


	44. FORTY FOUR

*Violet's POV*

Falling asleep was easier said than done. I was no stranger to napping on trains, but this one in particular seemed bumpier than most. I almost understood why Natsu got so motion sick. 

If nothing else, pretending to sleep discouraged Grey from trying to interact with me again. At least more than usual. I was sure I would never understand him. I shouldn’t have been surprised that a Fairy would be disturbed by my lashings, but when he had touched me, right before I turned away, his disgust had been for me, not just my scars. 

Several minutes passed as I pretended to sleep. Slowly, Grey began to relax, time washing our awkward interaction out of his system. At first I was worried that he would start to get antsy again as he had before. I knew that feeling his impatience would do nothing to help my nerves. But this time it didn’t happen. I wondered if it was because he thought I was asleep. Perhaps his discomfort had always been because of the lack of conversation. But now that it wasn’t expected...the feeling was gone? How strange. 

As Grey settled into what he thought was solitude, I noticed another presence approaching. I diverted all my attention to it, trying to figure out if it was worth turning to watch, but as the presence got closer it became clear to me who it was. Clam, confident, never quite at ease. I could recognize her anywhere. 

A moment later a voice confirmed my suspicion. 

“Is she asleep?” 

Grey jumped slightly. He hadn’t noticed Erza approaching, thought as soon as he realized it was her, he relaxed. 

“Yeah,” he said. 

“Well that might be for the best.” Erza sighed. 

A pang of guilt echoed in Grey’s heart, though I wasn’t sure why. He was holding something back, thought what it was, I couldn't be sure. 

I heard Erza move into our little compartment, sitting in one of the seats across from us. “Just came over to check on you.” she said, “I noticed that guy you scared off earlier, but I was dealing with Natsu.” 

I had to force myself to remain still at mention of his name, and then the subsequent thought that followed. What exactly did she mean by “dealing” with him? Before I had time to consider it, Grey spoke, drawing me back into the conversation. 

“It was just some creep.” he said. 

“So no one she knew then,” Erza said, suddenly relieved. 

I hadn’t even considered the prospect, though now that it had been brought to my attention I understood why it was Erza’s go to answer. Perhaps it had been Grey’s to when he had come over to send the man on his way. 

They were silent for a moment, both thinking. I was careful to make my breathing look natural, in case I was the subject of any wondering eyes. A moment later Erza spoke again. 

“I’m glad she’s getting some sleep.” 

So she had been looking at me then. 

“She didn’t look so good when I was with her this morning.” 

And again there was a little pang of guilt from Grey. “Actually, there’s something I have to tell you.” 

Erza’s sudden interest mirrored my own. 

“What is it?” 

“I don’t think she slept much last night.” 

So that was what he had been holding back. He felt guilty for not telling the others how I had deceived them. That meant I wouldn't be able to pull the same trick again tonight if they attempted to drug me again.

“Well I would think not,” Erza said, “She spent a lot of it running around Magnolia on her own.” 

“I know,” Grey said, “but I don’t think she slept before that, or when we got back either.” 

“There’s no way she could have fought the sleeping pills.” Erza said, politely but clearly dismissing him. 

“She didn’t take them.” 

“What?” 

“She told me that she didn’t.” Grey said, finally confessing. 

Erza began to think immediately. “Well that explains why she’s so tired but…”

Her unvoiced question hung in the air. 

Why would she not want to sleep? 

I struggled to look natural. If they found out I was eavesdropping now, not only would I have to deal with the shame of it, but I would be obligated to answer to my evasion of rest the night before. 

If August had been there he would have understood. He wouldn't be happy about it, but he would at least know why. I wondered how he would defend me, and started to regret agreeing to go alone. 

Minutes passed, and I wondered if Erza was going to leave soon, or if she planned to stay with us for the rest of the train ride. There was nothing in her emotions that could give me a definitive answer. I attempted scanning Grey. he knew her well enough, he might be able to predict what she’d do. But I found nothing. Instead I noticed something else, the general uneasiness that he seemed to experience whenever I wasn’t making conversation didn’t seem to exist during his silence with Erza. 

What made her lack of conversation different than mine? Was it because they were friends? Because he trusted her? Did he even realize that he was doing it? Or was it all subconscious? There was no way for me to be sure. 

“Can I ask you something?” Grey said. 

Erza grunted in response, inviting him to continue. 

“You spent all morning with Vi…” he seemed to be struggling for words. “Did you see what’s on her back?” 

My attention flipped over to Erza, searching for any scrap of information I could find, expecting an unclear answer. But this time she was direct. “So you saw them too then?” 

Grey must have nodded, because Erza sighed. 

“Does she know you know?” she asked. 

Suddenly uncomfortable, I heard Grey shuffle to a new position next to me. “I asked her about them.” 

“And?” 

“From her other guild. A punishment I guess.” 

The same disgust that Grey had met earlier filled Erza, but my thoughts were elsewhere. From her other guild. But that implied Grey counted me a member of his. Surely he had misspoken. I had no claim to Fairy Tail. 

The conversation continued on before I had time to gather my thoughts on the matter. 

“I can’t believe they didn't get out of there sooner.” Erza said. And there it was again. Pity, and then denial of pity, because she knew I didn’t want it. Even when she didn’t think I was awake to read her, she was conscious of what I would think of her thoughts. I wasn’t sure what to do with such thorough consideration. 

“That’s the thing,” Grey continued, again boiling up to something that was hard for him to describe, “I don’t think she saw anything wrong with it.” 

“What do you mean?”

“She offered to hide them, to take her hair down...I reached out to stop her. I wasn’t thinking, but then…” 

He was much more upset by this than I’d originally thought. But I was confused as to why. 

“You read her,” Erza supplied. 

“Right,” 

“Was she mad.” 

“No,” Grey said, “it was like she didn’t care.” 

“Well that’s good then right?” Erza said, “she let you in.” 

“It wasn’t like that thought,” Grey said, “she didn’t care that I read her because she didn’t care about the scars. And she wanted me to know that they didn’t matter to her.” 

“Perhaps they don’t.” Erza said. 

But her emotions don't match her words. She held the same disgust that Grey had when he’d thrown my hand aside. And then denial of that disgust. And then pity. And denial of pity. 

Both of them seemed to agree. 

Perhaps those scars don’t matter to her. 

But they should.


	45. FORTY FIVE

*Violet's POV*

Erza returned to her original seat a few minutes later. Grey seemed a little more relaxed now that he had spoken with her. Perhaps what he said were all things he’d been needing to get off his chest. I was glad that Erza could help him with that, especially since I couldn't. 

As far as I could tell, we still had more than an hour before the train arrived in Hargeon. For lack of anything better to do, and with Grey’s emotions no longer distracting me, I found my body relaxing. After a few minutes my mind followed suit, and soon I was drifting into darkness. 

~~~

As expected, I dreamed of fire. 

I found myself thrown into a circle of dying grass, bordered on all sides by garnered, ugly trees. It was too dark to see far, as the night sky above me seemed to be missing it’s moon and stars. 

I didn’t want to be alone in the darkness, but I could see no sign of company. I called out to the trees, hoping my voice could make it through them, and someone would come to join me. A moment later the underbrush shifted, and a muscular man with pink hair entered the ring of trees. 

I stood up at once, preparing to run and meet him, but the movement was too fast, and Natsu took a step back, threatening to disappear back into the underbrush, and leave me all alone once more. 

“I don’t want to hurt you!” I called. 

“But that doesn't mean you won't.” 

And even as he said it, I noticed that there were thin strings coming from my arms and legs, as if I was some kind of marinate. Without permission, my arm rose with a knife that had not been in my hand a second before. Natsu took up a defensive stance. 

“I don’t want to fight.” I sobbed. 

“Then don’t.” 

But I didn’t have a choice. The strings forced me forward, and as soon as I took a steep, the trees were engulfed with fire. 

The smoke burned my eyes and throat. I blinked as hard as I could in a vain attempt to see Natsu. 

“You did this to yourself.” he said, and turned his back to me, and walked through the flames to safety. As soon as he left the trees and flames began to close in, and I knew that soon they would crush me, but all I could do was hang from the strings and wait. 

Slowly, the trees came closer, close enough for me to touch if I had control of my arms. And then it stopped. I held my breath, waiting for death, and all at once, a hand emerged from the fire and grabbed my shoulder, I let out a shriek and fell against something. Hard. 

When I opened my eyes I was staring at Grey’s knees, having just fallen off my seat on the now stationary train. For a moment I was trapped between dreaming and awakening, and forgot exactly where I was. But once the realization came that the trees and the fire had not been real, the horror of my current situation came to replace my original fear. 

I scrambled up from the floor, almost knocking Grey over in the process. He had woken me, I was sure of it now. That meant we were in Hargeon . I swallowed hard, not looking at him, I had to come up with a response. 

“Sorry you had to wake me.” I said, “I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”

I prayed that this was an adequate greeting and moved out of the competent before he had a chance to say anything else. 

Behind me I could hear Grey’s gears turning. He had been frozen for a while until I spoke, but now he seemed to be connecting dots that I felt were best left separated. I didn’t dare look back at him. 

A little ways down the train car I saw Happy and Lucy attempting to drag a non cooperative Natsu out of their compartment while Erza offered instructions. I turned away, making for the door at the other end of the car. I could wait for the others on the platform, and hopefully give myself time to regain my composure. 

The dream was already fading from my memory, but even as the information slipped away, the feeling it had left me with seemed to be getting stronger. Definitely not a good start to what I knew would be a stressful journey. 

As I stepped out onto the platform I was faced with the same smell and sounds that always accompanied train stations. With them came the memories of what they had meant to me only a few short weeks ago, when a trip by train ment the beginning to a new job. And escape from the daily training grind at the compound, and the promise of a new adventure with August. Or on the other hand the return journey, where we would walk down the train car’s with our head held high, preparing for a debrief where we would boast of our skills. 

No such feeling came to me now. The sense of victory and adventure was no longer being refreshed, only recalled, and the remnants of past happyness bounced around my head, echoing back all of the good times with August that I would never experience again. 

I watched the doors to the train carefully, not wanting my guards to think that I had flown the coop. A moment later Grey emerged from the same door that I had come out of. I waved to get his attention, and he came to my side. 

“Might take a while to get Flame Brain out of the car.” he said conversationally, “when I left they were dragging him along the aisle.” 

I took his choice of conversation topic to mean that he wasn’t going to mention my obvious nightmare, though I could sense that it was still on his mind. I figured that I must have cried out when he tried to wake me, not to mention falling over. I knew that Grey was smart enough to realize what must have happened, especially since the knowledge that I had not taken the sleeping pills had been recent in his mind after his conversation with Erza. 

But I also noticed the way he was watching the doors of the train, silently begging for the others to come out. He wanted them to come rescue him from the awkward situation I had put him in. I knew that meant he was unlikely to bring it up on his own, and started to relax. That was one more thing I didn’t have to deal with, enough I knew I wasn’t out of the woods yet.

Both of us were waiting for the others to get off the train, and then we would head forward into uncharted waters. I had been to Hargeon a few times for connecting trains and occasional jobs, but the only time I had left the train station had been in the dead of night, and had been August leading the way. 

My current company didn’t make me nearly as comfortable. It was one thing to be stuck with the near strangers that had been my guards last night. But they were not the only ones I was waiting for. Any moment now, Natsu and Happy would be stepping off that train, and I would no longer have motion sickness as a shield between me and Natsu’s feelings. 

Things were going to get complicated. 

“There they are,” Grey called, not hesitating before sauntering forward to meet them. 

It took me a little more will power to get my feet moving towards the group of wizards, but I knew I couldn't stop. As I had told myself before getting on the train, the only forward, was onward.


	46. FORTY SIX

*August's POV*

I sat at my normal spot at the bar and stared into space. By now I knew that Vi must have arrived in Hargeon, and despite my protests I knew that Natsu was in tow. 

The thought of it sent a fresh surge of anger through me, but I tried my best to push it down. I knew I didn’t have much of a right to make requests of the master. That was the reason I hadn’t made any. I had done what I was told, gone with the flow, and held my tongue. 

But when the master told Natsu to go with Violet and the others on an already dangerous job, I had to put my foot down. It was the only thing that I had asked of him, and he had denied the request. 

I understood that he was the master of his guild, and thus had the right to make decisions for the greater good. But that didn’t extend to Violet and I. the way I saw it, we had not joined our own volition, but under someone else’s orders. Therefore we hadn’t agreed to making that old man our ally the way that all the other members had by joining normally. 

He was not responsible for us. 

And we owed him nothing. 

Now that we had turned traitor, we didn’t owe anyone anything. It was Violet and I against the world. It was up to me to make decisions that were best for us. The master had ignored that and sent Natsu along anyway.

The only thing I could do now was sit around and wait for word from Takashi, or for V to return, whichever came first. I was starting to realize that it was easier said than done to have Natsu play dead for the rest of eternity, and that I was going to have to come up with a better excuse for why he was still breathing. 

I could always pretend that we thought he was dead and that he miraculously showed up days latter, but there where a lot of issues with that plan to, namely that Violet wasn’t stupid enough to leave without properly disposing of the body. I would have to come up with a reason that he had been able to get away. 

The master had retracted to his office an hour or so before, though I figured he would be back soon. I knew that he must have plenty better things to do than babysitting me, but he had yet to leave me alone for more than two hours at a time. 

I did my best to accept this, even though I didn’t like it. I knew that it was only fair that I would be watched like a hawk after everything that happened. And I had it way better than Violet, who hadn’t escaped the Fairies’ gaze once since waking. 

And despite the overall atmosphere of the guild hall being damaged upon Vi and Natsu’s return, I could feel it slowly returning to normal. No one had really been hurt, and I knew that any damage we had done was fading away. I knew that they had faced worse. It was probably the natural response for most of them by now, disaster and recovery, a constant cycle. 

I shifted for a more comfortable position on my bar stool. I had been trained to deal with boredom, but even I had my limits. I hadn’t even left the guild hall since Violet returned, and the only one who seemed to dare starting a conversation was the master. At least before I had the opportunity to mingle with the other fairies, even if only to gain information. But it was pointless now. I wasn’t the one who would be fighting for Vi and I’s escape anymore. I just had to rig the game just perfectly so that both guilds could tear each other apart. Only then could we be free. 

Presently I heard a door open and close somewhere behind the bar. Apparently it was time for the master’s little check in. I took a deep breath, trying to prepare myself in the case that he tried to talk to me this time. 

When he emerged from the hall I noticed that he wasn’t alone, behind him was our former target Gajeel Redfox. I hadn’t seen him enter the master’s office, but hid my interest by averting my gaze. It was probably none of my business. A moment later the master appeared in his usual spot on the counter and a few feet to my right. I acted as though I hadn’t noticed him. 

After a few minutes I risked a glance to find that he wasn’t looking at me, but gazing out at the other guild members. I let out a sigh of relief, assuming this meant he wasn’t going to talk to me this time. 

But my celebration was short lived. 

As soon as I turned away from the master a heavy arm draped over my shoulder from behind, on instinct I threw an elbow into my attacker's gut, giving me time to hop off the stool and face my opponent. 

What I saw was an undeterred Gajeel. I worried for a moment if I would be in trouble for hitting him, but if the master was watching us, he didn’t let on. 

“What’s your problem?” I asked, hoping I sounded threatening enough that he would leave me alone. 

My rough tone seemed to have the opposite effect. Gajeel was now flashing a lopsided grin. “Just thought I’d come say hello to an old friend.” 

It was my turn to grin, though not in greeting. 

“We’re not friends.” I said, setting back onto my stool “Get lost.” I made a big show of turning my stool back to the bar, but in the process I accidently made eye contact with the master. Suddenly things became clear. Gajeel was not being friendly in the least. Talking to him was not a request. 

A hand on my shoulder further confirmed my suspicions. 

“I think the two of us should go on a little walk.” 

I looked up at the master. 

He raised an eyebrow, daring me to challenge him. I refused to be deterred. 

“Fine.” I said, both to the master and to Gajeel. “Let’s go.” 

I drained my cup and walked toward the door. Gajeel followed close behind me, as though he expected me to run. I stepped out into the fresh air, blinking against the sunlight. I couldn't let myself be distracted. 

I waited until I heard the door close behind us, and then turned Gajeel, ready to state my mind. 

“I know the master sent you to deal with me, so I’ll do us both a favor. We both go our separate ways and then meet here back in ten minutes, you’ll get your brownie points, and I don’t get in trouble, deal?” 

I stretched out my hand to seal the agreement, but Gajeel didn’t move. Something seemed to be flashing behind his eyes, and I realized in an instant that I had made the wrong decision. 

Perhaps the master had sent me out here not to be talked to, but to be dealt with. A horrible thought flashed through my mind. I had thrown Takashi off our trail, and then allowed Violet to leave on a job without me. If the master was going to do me in, now would be the time to do it. 

Could it be that I had been sent out here to die? 

My hand dropped to my side, but I made no other move. If I had to run, I would. all the way to Hargeon where Vi and I could be reunited. 

But Gajeel didn’t move to attack me. 

“Do you think this is a game?” 

Not having prepared myself for conversation, I sputtered for a moment, “W-what?” 

“Do you think that I would be out here if I didn’t wanna be?”

“But your master-”

“That old man gave me a suggestion, not an order.” he pinched the bridge of his nose, and I wondered if he was regretting his choice to drag me out here. “Look kid-” 

It was my turn to interrupt. “I’m not a kid.” 

He smiled at me again, “then how old are you?” 

I swallowed. I had told him I was twenty the first time we met, thought it was clear he no longer believed me, perhaps never did. It had already been a stretch to go that high, but I was worried about what questions would come if I wasn’t a legal adult. 

But after Grey and Natsu forced the truth out of Vi, it was harder to keep up pretenses. A six year age gap was possible, but not not likely. But of course we aren't actually siblings. And I wasn’t really an adult. 

“Seventeen.” 

“Seventeen.” The word was half sigh, half grimace, but if anything he seemed more determined now to get his two bits in. He took a deep breath, and I prepared myself for a quick retort, anything to get away from him. 

“You may not know this,” he started, “but before I joined Fairy Tail-” 

I knew where this was going, and I didn’t want to deal with it. “I know.” 

“You-” 

“Do you think we came here without research?” I asked, suddenly angry. “Do you think we were just flying by the seat of our pants?” 

“I didn’t say that.” 

And some small part of me knew that he was right. Some small part of me knew that this was an overreaction, triggered by my stress, or shame or who knew what else. 

But I didn’t care. 

Despite what he seemed to think, Gajeel was not my friend. Everything that was between us had been a rouse, and yet...I knew why the master had sent him after me. Because he had been the one that I had shown the most interest in.

Because he’s a target. 

Because the master thought we could relate to each other.

We are not the same. 

I wanted to break any pretense of a bond. Shatter our relationship, and thus our comparability until both were beyond repair. 

“We’re not that stupid.” I said, “We had a good plan, unlike you and Phantom Lord.” I sensed that I was about to cross a line, but I didn’t care. I relished in it. “Vi and I didn’t come in here guns blazing, hurting the first fairies that we could get our hands on just to throw a little hissy fit. If things hadn’t been so rushed you might be dead right now. It amazes me how an entire guild failed when it was so easy to infiltrate this place, hell, Vi just had a little sleep over at Lucy’s if that had happened a week ago we could be two targets down, all smothered in their sleep.” 

I was rambling, becoming hysterical. It was as though the fresh air, and the presence of someone who I had once been friendly with were drawing out all the ugly parts of me, poison from a wound. 

I was provoking a fight. provoking a yelling match. Anything to get me back in the running. One more chance to prove that I could win something. But Gajeel didn’t move. 

“Are you done?” he growled. 

I opened my mouth only to close it again. I recognized the look on his face. I had seen it many times before at Justice Valkyrie. He thought I was too young. Too inexperienced to deserve my rank. Too deserve my missions. Too young to deserve my anger. 

“This guild is a force to be reckoned with,” he said, “and it seems like both of us learned that the hard way. but the worst mistake you can make right now is to push yourself deeper into what that old guild of your set up for you. You’re at a crossroads because the old man is giving you a chance. Don’t. Throw. It. Away.” 

His eyes had suddenly changed. I realized then that he had not looking down on me before, but looking out for me. It wasn’t until then that I realized it wasn’t the same thing. 

Coming form anyone else this would have been a load of mindless Fairy Tail sentiments. But Gajeel and I both knew that he had been in my shoes before. I realized then that it must have been the master that reached out to him in the first place, calling him back to the fold after his guild had attacked the fairies. And now I was being offered the same choice. 

But I already had a plan. I was going to play nice only as long as it suited me, then leave everyone for dead. It was me and Violet against the world. I had been sure of that. 

I hated to admit I might have been wrong. 

But perhaps I hadn’t fooled the master as thoroughly as I’d first thought. Perhaps he had foreseen my need to run. Somehow, he had known that I was no longer loyal to any guild, but only to myself and Violet. 

So he had set his perfect charity project out to change my mind. 

And it was working.


	47. FORTY SEVEN

*Violet's POV*

It was a lot warmer in Hargeon than it had been in Magnolia. It wasn’t often that I walked down city streets in broad daylight, and I started to realize that many of the traits that I had assumed belonged solely to Fairy Tail’s home city were actually present everywhere. The hustle and bustle of merchants and tourists, children chasing each other through the casually turning crowd. 

But even so, I found I liked Magnolia better. There were parts of Hargeon that were different. It didn’t have the same quiet power and awe that I had found so intriguing in Magnolia. It smelled not of not of bakeries and flowers but of the sea, a reminder of the salty air at Justice Valkyrie's south base, our winter location. It had always been my favorite before. Though now I guessed I would never see it again. 

Happiness and despair fought each other in my heart at the prospect. I never had to go back there again. I was never going back. The battle seemed to be a draw, as after only a few seconds of consideration, the only thing I felt was emptiness. 

Erza walked a few feet ahead of me, clutching the job request in one hand and a map of the city in the other. The rest of my entourage brought up the rear, with Lucy and Grey standing between me and Natsu and Happy. I couldn't quite tell if this had been intentional or not, but I slightly thanked them for it nonetheless.

For now, Natsu didn’t seem to be paying much attention to what was going on around him. We had only just left the station, and I could still feel the haze of motion sickness hanging over his mind. I knew it could be several minutes before he was back to normal. The longer the better. 

I wasn’t sure how far we still had to go before arriving at our destination. I supposed that I should have asked Erza or Grey before getting off the train, but it was too late to do so now without seeming impatient. I would have had to deal with being led along blindly. 

After only a minute or so of walking I felt a change behind me, Lucy turned and whispered something to Grey that I couldn't quite make out, and a moment later I heard her rushing forward, coming to walk at my side. 

I glanced over as she fell into step beside me. She flashed a smile in greeting, and I did my best to return it, hoping that she had gotten the message. This seemed to be another one of her friendly endeavors, having me walk with her rather than alone, and I sensed that a conversation was coming before she started it, and somehow it was a relief. 

“Have you ever been here before?” she asked cheerfully. 

“Once or twice.” I sighed, “but never for long, and only at night.” 

I sensed a sudden uncomfortableness, but it passed quickly. I’m not sure why she expected that I would have been here for anything other than a mission. 

“How about you?” I asked, trying to pull the conversation away from my past and into hers. 

“A couple times,” she nodded, “mostly only when on the way to somewhere else though.” 

“Well it is a port town.” I prayed that she would stay something else. I didn’t know how to lead a conversation. perhaps it had been a mistake to ask her a question in the first place. Had I given her the impression that I was ready to have a long talk? 

I felt her prepare to say something else, then hesitate, considering if it was the right thing to say before finally speaking. “Actually, this is where I first met Natsu.” 

My body tensed, which was not unnoticed, but I forced myself to relax. Natsu was a part of her life. He was standing right behind me. He was normal. I had to convince myself of it. 

“I didn’t know that,” I said carefully, “was it before you joined then?” 

She nodded, seeming to take my words not only as interested in her, but as affirmation that Natsu was a safe conversation topic. 

She told me about how they had met, and then how she had joined Fairy Tail. as she spoke I mostly listened, though she seemed undeterred by my silence. Throughout the story I found myself picking up on details only to immediately throw them aside. I took mental notes about her, as thought I were gathering entail on a target, only to realize that it was unnecessary. I wasn’t planning on killing her. I never had been. I became unsure of what I was supposed to be paying attention to, if not gathering information to use against her later, I didn’t know what to remember. But not knowing what else to do, I kept on as I was. Perhaps the things I learned would turn out to be useful in some other way. 

Lucy concluded her story shortly after she arrived at Fairy Tail, and I looked ahead to Erza to see that we were no closer to our destination. We appeared to be passing through the heart to town, but she showed no signs of stopping as we walked right through it. I guessed that our destination had to be on the opposite side of the Hargeon as the train station. 

I realized that a lot of time had passed since Lucy had last spoken. It must be my turn to say something. But I had nothing to say. What could we talk about that didn’t lead to awkward places? What did we have in common? And it came to me. The reason that I had been so excited to meet all the Fairy tail wizards in the first place. We could all use magic. 

“You’re a Celestial Wizard right?” I asked. 

The question seemed to surprise Lucy, but she recovered quicker than I would have been able to. “Yep!” 

And there was a sudden rush of pride there. And adoration for not only her talent as an individual, but for all of the celestial wizards who had come before her. A love of the art itself. I had no such relationship with my magic, and it occurred to me for the first time that perhaps I was the outlier in that. 

“I’ve never really met one before you.” I said, “I didn’t even know it was a thing.” 

“Well we’re not common,” Lucy said, “it’s not easy to collect enough keys to really make it work.” I watched her hand fall unconsciously over the large pouch of her belt, where I knew her keys were resting. 

“It must be hard,” I said, struggling to keep my words going, “to keep up good relationships with all of them…” 

I realized I had lost her. 

“Your spirits I mean,” I amended, becoming more unsure of what I was trying to say, “it’s like…” a magic built out of making friends. 

But even as the thought came to me, I realized how ridiculous something like that would sound to someone like Lucy. She, who was friends with everyone. Working with spirits must come as second nature to her, the perfect match of magic and wizard. 

But I had already painted myself into a corner by talking without thinking. I had to come up with something… “I don’t know.” I said quickly, “I’m just rambling I guess.” 

“Oh,” Lucy said cheerfully, “no worries!” 

But I knew that my patchy recovery hadn’t gone over her head. She knew that I had been planning to say something only to back out at the last minute. And I felt my heart falling as I realized I had wasted my precious words to say nothing. 

I counted twenty six steps before she spoke again. 

“Once we have some down time,” she said, talking slower than usual, “Remind me to show you, my spirits would love to meet you...most of them anyway.” 

I sensed the tell tale signs of an unpleasant memory, and I was half tempted to ask what exactly Lucy meant by most of them. But I thought better of it. I didn’t want to remind her of my magic, after having a conversation that she had thought was normal, I knew it could be awkward to remind her that I had been able to read her the whole time. 

I knew that my sliver tongue should have been an unfair advantage in winning people over. I should have been able to keep conversations going easier than other people, because I would be the only one in the group who knew what everyone was feeling about it. 

But things never seemed to work out in my favor. 

Even with the added aid of seeing into people’s heads, I was always the one out of the loop. It was me who was missing some fundamental part of communication, something that blocked my ability to understand the people around me. I had thought before that Lucy was the perfect person to be a celestial wizard. But how did I fit in with my Magic? 

Silver tongue and I didn’t seem to compliment eachother much. I was too shy to use it to any real advantage, or perhaps I was shy because of my magic. I had never considered it before. I had never been in a palace where my shyness was as an much of an issue as it was in Fairy Tail

Connecting with other people was not necessary for the jobs I did. If there needed to be talking done then August would always be the one to do it. I hadn’t ever needed anyone else. It was me and him. The perfect team. 

But I realized not that perhaps that wasn’t entirely true. I had never needed any social skills because I never used them, which in turn meant that I didn’t have any. And now, walking through the streets of an unfamiliar city, miles away from August and surrounded by strangers, I finally realized that I was a fish out of water, drowning on what should have been solid land. 

After only a few more minutes of walking I realized we were nearing the border of the city. Already the buildings around us had started to thin out, making room for larger yards and gardens. Every minute or so we would pass by another path, until there were no more forks in the road left. 

I noticed that Erza had pocketed the map and the job request, no longer needing their guidance. We were close now. I looked up to see she was leading us toward a large two-story house only a little ways ahead of us. It was beautiful and mighty, with a white wrap around porch and large windows looking in one what I assumed was a two story entryway. 

We were almost there. 

I was unsure of how to approach a job like this. All of the ones that I had already been on didn’t involve meeting with the client first, and now that I was here I found myself growing nervous. 

The job request had been for me. I wouldn't be able to allow the others to talk to these strangers on my behalf, but I had no idea what I was supposed to say, how I was supposed to play this. I didn’t even know who was asking for me or how they had known I was at Fairy tail. 

But I had no more time to work things out. Before I knew it, our rather large group had congregated on the narrow porch of the house, and after doing a quick head count, Erza turned and wordlessly knocked on the door three times.

I felt the other’s nervousness grow around me, all of their bodies automatically taking defensive positions, and I noticed for the first time that I was sandwiched in the center of the group, protected by a circle of fairies. But before I could do anything about it, I heard movement form inside the house. 

I felt everyone around me holding their breath. Slowly, the door fell open, revealing a young man on the other side. He had sea green hair kept at bay by a pony tail that strongly resembled my own. His clothes were plain and practical, not something I had expected of a resident of a house so large. His narrow eyes slid over me easily, watching the others. I could sense that he was reserved, calculating and callused. I didn’t read any mal intent, but there was nothing objectively good about him either. 

It was Erza that finally spoke. “We are Fairy Tail wizards.” she said, “here to complete the request you sent.” 

The man took a step back, but not far enough for us to see inside. “Yes,” he nodded, his voice, like his face, gave nothing away, “we received word that you were on your way.” He looked over us again. “Do you have the Silver Tongue with you?” 

Erza hesitated, still unsure of his intent. I filled the gap. If something was going to happen, good or bad, I wanted to get it over with. “I’m here.” I said. 

The man's eyes came to me with renewed interest. I forced myself not to shrink under them. He scanned over me again, then stopped halfway through, finding something he liked, before looking away and smiling. 

I scowled. I had already dealt with one creep that day, I wasn’t sure I could handle another. But before I could make up my mind about what to do, he stepped aside, opening the door in earnest. “Come in.” 

We did. 

I lead the way this time, trying to get a read of the place, desperate for more information. The others followed me warily, all prepared to leap into a fight at a moment's notice. The man closed the door behind him and slid several locks into place, making us all uneasy. A moment later he appeared at the front of the group. 

“I imagine you all must be confused by our request.” he sighed, turning his back and leading us deeper into the house. “I hope we can explain it soon.” 

The entryway was dark, and it was making me uneasy. I could see the shadows of ornate furniture, a beautiful staircase with a hand crafted gold banister, and still we walked on. Finally we reached a set of white double doors, and the man stopped to open them. 

I sucked in a breath. The room was beautiful. The twelve foot ceilings were dripping with crown molding and washed in light from the narrow floor to ceiling windows set into the opposite wall. On either side of the door were alternating tapestries and bookshelves, and right in front of me was a large white desk with several chairs waiting in front of it. 

The man who had greeted us at the door walked around to the opposite side where a woman was waiting in a high wing back office chair. She smiled at me first, and then looked at each of the others in turn, her white-blond hair glittering as she moved her head. 

“Please sit,” she said, in a voice that I felt was much too low and mature for her soft face and eyes. 

We did as we were told, and no sooner had my butt touched the soft velvet of my seat cushion had Natsu opened his mouth. 

“Are you gonna tell us who you are?” 

My eyes slid shut, as if cutting off the light could hide me from the embarrassment of him. The others reacted similarly, save for Grey who seemed to be expecting an answer. 

But the two strangers before us were undeterred. I opened my eyes slowly to find that the woman was smiling. “I suppose we owe you that and more now that you’ve come all the way here.” 

I leaned forward in my chair. 

“My name is Topaz.” she said, “and this is my partner Kaze.” 

The rest of us introduced ourselves, though the entire time the others were talking, Topaz kept her eyes on me. I tried to remain calm as I choked out my own name “Violet.” 

“We’ll be in your care.” the woman said, finally looking away from me and to the man, Kaze. 

The Fairies were unsure of how to proceed. I felt my own curiosity boiling away in my chest, melting my fear. “If you don’t mind me asking,” I said, “Why did you send for me specifically?” 

“We sent for Fairy Tail wizards.” Kaze said, “I thought I didn’t expect so many.” 

“You requested a Silver Tongue.” I said, ignoring his off hand remark, “That’s me.” 

I could feel the others looking at me, but I ignored them. At this point it was unlikely we would be attacked. What I needed now were answers. 

Kaze looked back to Topaz, deferring to her in appearance, though I sensed in both of them that they viewed each other as equals. “You are correct.” Topaz said, “We did send for you.” 

“But why?” I asked, “and how did you know I would be there.” 

“Straight to the point I see.” her tone made the fairies shift uncomfortably in their chairs, but I could sense what she really thought of my directness. refreshing , exhilarating, new. I was amusing her. 

I liked it. 

“Then I won't beat around the bush with you either.” Topaz continued. “We asked you here because we know who you are Violet Price.” 

I heard a sharp intake of breath from somewhere behind me, and struggled to douse my own rising anxieties.

“That bandage you’re wearing…” Kaze said, “are you injured?” he gestured to the one remaining bandage, the one that was hiding my Justice Valkyrie guild mark. I realized only then, that it must have been the subject of his interest when we were still on the porch. Even then he must have known. But…

“I-I don’t understand.” 

“Let me explain.” 

Kaze reached for the color of his shirt and pulled it down a few inches, there, I saw a similar symbol, a pair of wings bordering a single sword. The mark of the guild that had raised me.


	48. FORTY EIGHT

*Violet's POV*

I felt my heart accelerating to panic mode, I rose from my seat so fast I knocked it over, reaching for the danger hiding under my belt and pulling it out. The Fairies tensed behind me, all of us waiting for the others to make the first move. 

“You have good instincts.” Topaz said calmly, “I would expect nothing less.” 

I realized that neither one of them planned to attack me. Even if they had been trying to block my magic, that was something that I would have noticed. I did a quick scan of the room, assuming there might be other attackers hiding around us. But we were alone. 

“What-” 

“It appears that we were a bit rash.” Topaz said, “I should have shown mine first.” 

She reached down and removed a rather large bracelet from her wrist, then extended her arm to me across the desk. As soon as I saw it, the last piece sank into place, but the completion of this puzzle only told me that there were several more to complete before I was done. 

“And what the hell is that supposed to be?” Grey said, “We’re gonna trust them over some burn?” 

But Topaz paid him no mind. She, as well as Kaze, was looking at me. The felt the fairy’s confusion boiling up behind me, but it was as though they didn’t matter. As thought Topaz Kaze and I were the only ones in the room. 

“It’s not a normal burn.” I said. 

“What do you mean?” asked Lucy. 

“It’s a brand.” I said, turning my head away. I didn’t want to look at the red and damaged skin any longer. “They give it to deserts before execution, right over their guild mark.” 

To my relief, Topaz put her bracelet back on. Several of the fairies behind me had the sudden urge to vomit. 

“How did you escape?” I asked. “I didn’t think anyone got away after turning traitor.” 

Topaz flinched at the word, but she didn’t hold it against me. “I had just just become a senior officer.” she said, her eyes looking at some point that the rest of us couldn't see. “Kaze and I teamed up with another pair to take out a client's political rival in some town up north.” 

“Four of you for one man?” I asked. I’d heard of advanced operations like that, but never for something that small. 

“He was paranoid, tons of security. All of us had to go deep cover. We were there for over a month. I’d posed as a governess to watch over the men's two kids. His son was older and didn’t need much help, but his younger daughter and I drew rather close.” 

Deep cover. Just like August and I had been doing at Fairy Tail. 

“Finally it was all set up.” Topaz said, “We had all been invited to a dinner party a few nights before the election. It was just going to be us, the target, and his family.” 

She looked down at the desk in front of her, and Kaze continued where she’d left off. “It was the only shot we had. The job needed to be done before the election or things would get even more messy. The only problem was…” 

“No witnesses,” I finished. The same words I had assured myself with when holding a danger to Happy’s neck less than a week before. 

“It was our only shot. The Commander told us to take it, so we did.” 

“We drew straws.” Topaz said, finding her voice again, “all based on difficulty for the man, his wife and two kids. Technically I won. She was four.” 

I swallowed. 

“I watched her all through the dinner, helping her fix her plate. I knew I couldn't do it. I made a plan. As soon as the fight broke out I carried her out of the house and told her to run. By the time I came back her family was dead. A moment later one of the others came at me from behind with chloroform. I didn’t stand a chance.” 

“We went back to the guild that night, and Topaz was branded and scheduled for death the next morning.” Kaze said, “I went along with the others and turned on her. The commander wanted it used up quickly. He ordered me to tell Takashi to deal with her. I said I would. And then we ran.” 

“But how did you get her out?” Grey was asking, “surely they would have known you were on her side when you came for her latter.” 

“They would have,” Kaze said, “but I didn’t come for her.” 

confusion reached out to everyone but Topaz, and then Kaze closed his eyes. When he opened them, his form had changed, his clothes hung loose on the more slender body of Takashi. 

It had been the first time I’d seen him since my failure in the woods. Even though I knew he wasn’t really there, his gaze made me shift uncontrollably in my seat. 

“You’re a wizard.” Erza said, and I sensed that she had guessed that as soon as they met.

Kaze changed back into his real body. 

“Did Takashi teach you too?” I asked. He seemed too old to be in the same program as August and I, perhaps that's why he had been paired with a non-wizard in the end. 

“No,” Kaze said, “it was something I had learned before joining. They never knew I had it. They still don’t.” 

The gears in my head were turning, but there was no telling if I was making progress. It didn’t help that I could feel all the others processing around me, trying to connect the dots in their own way. 

“You’re still there.” Grey said coolly. 

“A spy.” Kaze agreed, “after turning in Topaz I was permitted to fly solo.” 

“The highest honor.” I told the fairies. To not need a partner, it was the most any of us hoped for. 

“But I avoid doing most of my jobs. The thing I want most is to see the guild shut down.” 

“Then why not go to the magic council?” Lucy asked, “the rune knights could-” 

“Do you think that I would be spared from prison?” Kaze asked, “do you think that she would?” he pointed to me and Lucy’s argument died. “It’s not that simple.” he said not unkindly, “but I do what I can, destroying job requests, sealing money, little things here and there. That’s how I saw your job.” 

“And so you called me here.” I said. 

“To try and make you reconsider,” Topaz said, “but by the time the request had made it to the Fairy tail guild hall we knew you didn’t need our help for that.” 

Suddenly I realized something was wrong again. They had known that I was on good terms with the fairies around me. If they had known that I had turned traitor then…

“Relax.” Topaz said, reading my expression, “the commander has no idea, Kaze took care of the spy that was meant to check to see if the Salamander was really dead. No one at Justice Valkyrie knows you’re here.” 

I felt so relieved I could cry. “Thank you,” I whispered. Behind Topaz the night had fallen, but it seemed that the inky blackness was an old friend, rather than a mist made to conceal my fate. 

Ever since that night in the woods with Natsu I had felt more alone than ever before. My secret had been revealed to the targets that I respected. My failure turned me traitor from the comrades I feared. Separated by necessity from the only person I trusted, I had turned in on myself, knowing that I was all that was left for me. I was alone, and the world I knew stopped just past my nose, anything beyond it was strange and new and threatening. 

But not anymore.

The two strangers in front of me represented a movement. They

were proof that I wasn’t the only one. There were others. And there could be

more. For the first time since arriving at Fairy Tail, I felt that I was finally with someone that could. help me. 

As soon as Topaz and Kaze had finished their story, the atmosphere in the room had changed. Having finally understood that the reason for the job request was to extend a hand of friendship, the Fairies had relaxed, this was a territory they knew well, even though it was new and exciting for me. 

“Two doors down you will find a dining room.” Topaz said, “There is food waiting there for you, and we have prepared a room upstairs for you to rest until tomorrow.” 

At the mention of food Natsu and Happy had already risen from their seats, but I knew that Topaz hadn’t finished. 

“If you don’t mind,” she said, “We’ll send Violet along a little later, I think it might be good for us to talk in private.” 

The others hesitated, but I had already made up my mind. I was more than comfortable with these fellow deserters, and honored that they had something they wanted to say to only me. 

“I’ll be fine,” I assured the others, turning to look at them for the first time. “I’ll meet up with you later.” 

Slowly, they agreed, and one by one left the room, shutting the door behind them. 

It was a few moments before anyone spoke, all three of us seemed to be taking the other party in, trying to find out what made them tick. Finally the spell was broken and Topaz gestured to a plush looking couch near a coffee table to the right of the desk. 

“You might be more comfortable there.” she offered. 

I looked over at it. Normally I would have declined, but I found myself nodding, “Yes, thank you.” it was as though my body was pulling me toward her. She who had failed a mission just as I had, refusing to kill someone she had inadvertently grown close to. We were the same. I wanted to be near her. 

Topaz sat a foot away from me on the couch while Kaze settled into an armchair on the other side of the coffee table. I had no idea what she planned to say to me, but the prospect of conversation didn’t fill me with dread as it usually did. I was on the edge of my seat. 

“How old are you Violet?” she asked, and I sensed that she was treading carefully, not wanting to offend me or overstep her bounds. 

“Fourteen.” I said, hoping a direct answer would relax her. There was no need for word games here. All three of us had been cut from the same cloth. They understood the briskness of conversation that I was used to. No need for extra words. No room for emotion. 

“So young.” Topaz sighed in spite of herself, “so you joined as a child then?” 

“Yes.” I said. 

“And when did you start Takashi’s program?” Kaze asked. 

I blinked, I had never been asked this before, “Almost as soon as I came.” I said, “as long as I can remember.” 

Kaze and Topaz exchanged a look that I didn’t know the meaning of, but at the time I didn’t care. “Your partner was with you the whole time.” Kaze said, it wasn’t a question, “his name was..” 

“August,” I suspected, “We’ve always been together.” 

“He came with you to the Fairy job didn’t he?” Topaz said, “is he okay with…” 

“Yeah I think so.” I said, “we haven’t had a lot of chances to talk. But I think he’s fine.” I briefly explained his archive magic, and what he had told me the night that Takashi came. One thing led to another and I was telling them everything, right from the moment that we stepped on the train to Magnolia. The words seemed to pour out of me as if I had been storing them up in my days of silence or one-word answers. And they listened to every drop of it, paying attention to me and only me for the better part of an hour. 

When I made it to the part in the forest I found tears starting to gather in my eyes, but despite only having met the others an hour before, I did not feel ashamed when they ran down my face at the description of what I had almost done to Happy. 

I rubbed at my face sheepishly, and was startled to see that Topaz’s eyes were glassy as well. Kaze wordlessly stood and retrieved a box of tissues, which he set down between us on the couch before returning his seat. I talked, telling them everything, how scared I was of the fairies, and how I knew that they would never understand my fear. When I was finished, Topaz reached forward and held me, exactly the way that Erza had intended to earlier that morning. 

We embraced for several minutes before I found the courage to pull away, though as I did so Topaz’s hand trailed down to mine, holding it in hers carefully. 

“I know it doesn't feel like it,” Topaz said, “but the guilt will go away.” 

My mouth opened to protest, then closed again. I realized I wanted to believe her. 

“You should talk to them.” she said.

Now there was something I didn’t want to hear. And she had known it. 

“It doesn't have to be now,” she said, responding to what she read in me from my hand, “but you should do it.” 

I looked down at my lap. I knew it was the truth. 

“But not tonight.” she said, “it’s late, and you’ve had a long day. I’m sure your friends have finished in the dining room by now, but we saved some for you in the kitchen.” she stood, motioning for me to follow. 

I did, and we left the room with the desk, and Kaze with it. She led me down the hall that we had entered in hours before, and thought one of the doors I could hear the excited chatter of the fairies. But for the time being I did not care to listen in. I didn’t care what they were doing. Topaz led me past them and into the kitchen, where a pot of soup was still warming on the stove. “Help yourself.” she said, “I’m going to show your friends to your room, then you can join them when you're ready. Kaze will get your bag.” 

I was unsure of how to thank her when she seemed to have magically known exactly what I needed. I didn’t move as she left the room, but waited for a moment walking back to the food and giving myself a generous helping. I heard the fairies walk past the closed door and up the stairs as I did so. I ate as quickly as I dared, giving myself a few minutes to process things on my own before Topaz returned. 

“Are you ready?” she asked. 

I nodded, and she led me up the stairs to the room where I sensed the fairies were waiting. 

We bid each other goodnight, and then parted ways. I took a deep breath before entering the room. Just as they had at Lucy’s, the fairies had already set out my bed roll. I noticed that they had stopped talking when I entered the room, perhaps hoping that I would fill the silence by telling them what the others and I had talked about. And perhaps one day I would. But as Topaz had said, not tonight, and I crawled into my blankets and fell asleep.


	49. FORTY NINE

*August's POV*

Gajeel and I returned to the guild hall late. We had spent the better part of the day at a restaurant that he insisted was world class, despite evidence of roaches in the men’s restroom. 

After our initial confrontation, Gajeel didn’t mention any sensitive topics. It was clear to me that my attempt to break our relationship had fallen flat, but my outburst had done something else. He was treating me differently than he had before. I was sure of it. I just couldn't put my finger on what exactly had changed. 

Before I had a chance to really think everything though, Gajeel had walked with me back to the guild hall before heading toward Fairy Hills without saying goodbye. 

I took a deep breath before placing a hand on the cool metal handle of the guild’s doors. My little taste of freedom was about to come to an end. But I knew the master was probably waiting inside, ready to lock me in for the night. It wasn’t fair to keep him waiting. 

I opened the door to reveal a nearly empty hall with dimmed lights. The only person I could see was the master, sitting cross legged on the bar in the exact same spot he had been when Gajeel called me out earlier that day. 

I approached the master with my head down, hoping that there wound’t be much conversation as I was forced into his office. Without being told I looped around to the far side of the bar, taking myself into the back hall before he had even turned to face me. 

“Where are you going in August?” 

I froze. 

“To your office?” 

It had been where I’d slept ever since Violet came back. It only made sense for me to go there now right? Or was he mad that I hadn’t talked to him. What could he possibly have to say to me? 

“There will be no need for that tonight.” he said. 

I swallowed. He still hadn’t turned to face me, but I couldn't tell if I was more or less comfortable talking to the back of his head. After it became clear that I wasn’t going to break the silence he took it upon himself. 

“As I understand it, you and Violet had an apartment here in Magnolia before all this happened.” 

“Uh...yeah?” 

“I think it’s time that you were allowed to return there.” 

It had to be a trick. 

I walked back around to the other side of the counter, forcing him to look at me. Forcing myself to look at him. He cocked an eyebrow. His expression gave nothing away. I wonder what Violet would have read in him. 

“Are you sure that’s safe?” was all I could think to say. 

Some kind of amusement twinkled behind his eyes. “I would think a young wizard such as you would be able to handle himself.” 

My mouth opened only to close again. 

“Of course there’s that lacarma bracelet of yours to deal with.” 

Suddenly I understood. The bracelet had been programmed to alert the others if I left the guild hall alone. He must have been playing to re-calibrate it to keep an eye on me. I wasn’t really free, just not being watched directly. 

I reached out my hand, offering the bracelet to the man in front of me. He casually reached forward with both hands and tore it from my wrist without batting an eye. 

“Now that’s taken care of I think you’re all set.” 

I stared down at him. His smile widened. He knew what he was doing. He was having fun messing with me. 

“You don’t have any other trackers on me.” it wasn’t a question. I knew it was true. And yet...why…

“Well I should think not.” the master said, “you can go back to your apartment alone.” he jumped off the counter and walked toward the door as if that settled things. “I’ll see you in the morning.” 

“But-” 

“But what August?” 

I sputtered. What was I going to say? Call him an idiot for trusting me? Ask him if he was expecting me to run? Had he somehow known all along that I had been planning to take Violet and ditch them? She was in Hargeon, but I could find her. I knew the address. Just like that the two of us would be free. But it was too easy. Surely it was a trap. 

“Aren’t you afraid I’ll take off?” I asked, “isn’t that why you’ve been keeping me here?” 

The master turned to face me, suddenly serious. 

“I was keeping you here because I don’t intend to have any more battles among guild members.” he said. 

I blinked. “I hadn’t even considered-” 

“I wasn’t talking about you.” 

“You-what?” 

The master sighed, seemed to realize that I was going to need more explanation. “I know you were doing what you thought was best for Violet. But not everyone does.” 

“I-” 

“I know there wasn’t a lot of choice for either one of you. But you understand how this looks. A lot of them trust her more than you.” 

I thought of the glares that I had received from Natsu. The way the others had talked over me that morning. Grey’s chastisement that first night. “Surely you knew that Natsu is stronger than Violet.” he’d said, “Why did you let her go?” 

“And what about you?” I asked, though I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the answer. “Which one of us do you trust more?” 

He pursued his lips. But his answer wasn’t direct. “You should go home in August.” 

“And if I don’t?” I was forcing him to face the consequences of the freedom he had given me. “If I run?” 

His master turned away. “Then I won't be the one to tell Violet that you fled.” 

He turned and walked out of the guild hall, finally ending the conversation and leaving me alone. I lingered there for a long time, as though standing at a crossroads despite still being inside. 

After several minutes I took a deep breath and took a step forward, and then another, all of them inevitably leading to my apartment where I would stay until the morning. 

*Violet's POV*

This time, I did not dream of the woods. But that did not stop the fire. 

All around me where buildings, all in various stages of annihilation. There was fire here, but it was not the same fire that I had dreamed of before. This was the doing of torches, not magic. My attacker was not Natsu tonight. 

But that didn’t mean I was safe. Through the flames I could see running figures, some fleeing the burning village, others charging into it. But I wasn’t supposed to move. Someone had told me to stay put. To stay hidden. Someone important. But now I couldn't remember who. The fire was getting closer to the underbrush in which I had been crouching. But I didn’t want to leave. I had been told to stay. 

And then a face appeared from the smoke, a skinny face framed by sweeping silver hair. His piercing blue eyes were sweeping the bushes in which I hid. “Keep looking,” he was calling, “she has to be here somewhere.” 

And then the scene dissolved, and I was back in the compound with August, walking toward another sparring match. Before I had even stepped on the mat I had known it would be impossible. I was going to lose, and the dream shifted to the stocks, and an older member of the guild flicking the whip in the air behind me. I closed my eyes and waited for the pain to begin, but it never did. 

I looked up to find that I was sitting in Master Makarov’s brightly lit office, but he wasn’t smiling like I’d hoped. “You betrayed us.” 

And then he changed, and it was Erza sitting in his chair. “You betrayed us.” 

And then Lucy. and Grey. Natsu then Happy, over and over again until I looked every member of the guild in the eyes. Finally it was the master again, and he watched me calmly without saying a word. 

“I’m sorry.” I told him, “I promise I am.” 

But he didn’t even blink. 

A moment later the wall erupted behind him, and the same silver haired boy from the first dream appeared, though now I could tell that he was several years older. It was Takashi, and with one swipe of his sword the master's head was cut clean off and fell to the floor, rolling to a stop at my feet. “You did it Vi.” he said, “you won.” 

And then Erza was sitting in the chair, as unbothered as the master had been before her. And then she was dead. 

And Grey came. And Takashi killed him and congratulated me. 

And Lucy. Then Natsu then Happy. 

“You did it! I’m so proud of you.” 

And I screamed and begged him to stop, but he was smiling. “This is what you want.” he told me calmly, as Wendy slumped forward on his blade. “This is your victory, and you will be rewarded.” 

And I knew that nothing I could do would be enough to make it stop.


	50. FIFTY

*Grey's POV*

Grey knew something was wrong even before the screaming started. Despite what he assumed were Violet’s best wishes, he was not someone who was widely considered to be unobservant. He knew why she had refused those sleeping pills the night before. 

Grey had formed his suspicions as soon as he’d seen her in South Gate Park, but they were all but confirmed after waking her train earlier that day. Waking from normal sleep didn’t cause that kind of reaction. He knew what it must have been, and yet...he had refrained from telling the others. 

The event with Natsu in the woods had come to a shock to the entire guild. But as Grey understood it, the way forward was simple. August was working with Gramps to fight back against Justice Valkyrie. It would be a long road and probably not an easy one, but then things would return to a new normal. At least for him. 

But Violet and August’s lives as they knew were over. And they hadn’t been put to rest peacefully. 

Grey had no idea what really happened in those woods with Natsu. He doubted he ever would. But he knew that it had been that moment that changed August and Violet’s lives forever. The point of no return. 

But those thoughts had faded as sleep took him, and did not immediately return upon waking. Through his eyelids Grey could see the light of morning streaming into the room. He opened them slowly, sitting up on his bed roll. 

He wasn’t exactly sure what time it was, but he knew that he hadn’t gotten to sleep until late the night before. To his left Natsu and Happy were still dead asleep. To his right Lucy and Erza were already awake and talking in hushed voices. They gave him a nod of acknowledgment when he looked their way, and then continued their conversation. 

Beyond them lay Violet, her futon pushed several feet away from Lucy’s leaving a gap between her and the others’ neat line. She was facing the wall, but he could see the rise and fall of her breath. Also still asleep. 

But as he watched he knew something was off. Her breath was coming a little too quickly. The blanket that had begun the night pulled securely around her shoulders had fallen to her waist here it had become intertwined with her occasionally spasming legs. 

First realization, and now came the decision. To wake her now and save her the fear of whatever she was seeing, or leave her be to save her the embarrassment of his noticing. The question became more urgent as a sudden thrash sent her knee into the wall with a dull thunk. The girls turned to watch as a whimper escaped her lips. 

Erza’s reaction came quicker. She realized what was going on in an instant, then turned to Grey, eyes burning. So he wasn’t the only one that had connected the dots then. He had told her about Violet’s refusal of sleep the night before. And now they both knew why. 

Grey heard something shuffling behind him, and realized that the noise must have woken Natsu as well. He didn’t turn to acknowledge him, but crawled closer to Violet and the others. 

Erza was lingering halfway between where she had been her own bed roll and the one where Violet lay quivering. She seemed to be dealing with the same questions that had plagued Grey only moments before. Wake her or leave her? Fear or shame? 

Lucy had no such qualms. 

She was already on her way to Violet, he hands inches away from her shoulders when Violet let out a scream that sent chills down Grey’s spine. His hands clutched at the pillow in front of him, knuckes turning white. This seemed to snap Erza out of her haze. There were no two ways about it now. They had to wake her. 

More movement sounded from behind Grey, and this time he turned to see Natsu scrambling forward. Ignoring the girls for the moment, Grey moved to intercept him, only to be met with a fiery gaze. 

“Let me though.” Natsu said, perfectly alert despite only waking seconds before. 

“No can do.” Grey said, “You promised not to bother her.” 

Natsu opened his mouth to protest when a low grunt sounded from the other side of the room. Grey turned to see the aftermath of what he assumed had been Violet punching Erza in the process of being woken. 

Now Violet was sitting up, a sheet of brown hair hiding her from Ezra’s gaze. Her eyes flew up and landed on Natsu before darting back down again, blinking away the tears feebly. 

Natsu made to move closer again, only to be stopped by Grey. behind him he heard the others attempting to calm Violet down. He knew that Natsu could only make things worse. 

“Let me though, Grey,” he said again, but this time it wasn’t out of anger. It was a true request. A plea. 

“You know I can't,” Grey said almost regretfully. 

Natsu sighed and sat back on his haunches, Grey let out a sigh, confident that he wasn’t going to try to get past again. He looked back to the other side of the room just in time to hear Violet mumble something about “bathroom” and ‘sorry” before scampering to the door and closing it behind her.

*August's POV*

The walk back to the guild hall had never been longer. Every step I took was a reminder that I really was returning, of my own volition, to the Fairy Tail guild hall. And still my feet pulled me forward. 

I couldn’t stop imagining the master’s smug expression. The face that knew that I had been too scared to run. Knew that despite my lack of literal imprisonment I was still bound to the guild had been my downfall. 

I wondered if it would be the same face he had worn when seeking out Gajeel all those years ago. 

I shook my head vigorously. If this really had been one of the old man’s mind games, then no amount of overthinking was going to get me out of it. I had known I was bound to return to the guild before I even left it. 

And I knew it wasn’t just because I had nowhere else to go. 

Fairy Tail had a draw that I had never quite experienced anywhere else. An Aura, as Violet would call it. Something about their inefficient job system and chaotic environment. Something about the way people smiled at me despite knowing what I had done. What I had almost done to them. Something about the way that they had refused to hurt Violet even though she had hurt them. 

I couldn't turn away from it yet. By letting me go, the master had forced me to prove to myself that I didn’t really want to leave. The man was too smart for his own good. 

By the time I neared the guild hall, the prospect of running was the last thing on my mind. I knew it was only natural that I enter. It was right. Every brick and board and ridiculously friendly face seemed to pull me in, convince me that I belonged there. 

I placed my hand on the door and pushed it open, allowing the familiar smell of booze and magic to wash over me as I stepped over the threshold. Ahead of me, I could see the bulky outline of Gajeel sitting in the seat that I usually sulked in. 

I paused in the doorway for only a moment before moving to join him. And as I walked through the bustling building, I whispered to myself the words that I had always longed to say but never had an opportunity for. 

“I’m home.”


	51. FIFTY ONE

*Erza's POV*

As soon as Violet left, Erza felt the atmosphere of the room change. It wasn’t quite a relaxation, as much as it was a suspension of tension. Erza hadn’t exactly been surprised by Violet’s outburst. It had been the last piece of the puzzle that started when Grey had informed her of Violet’s sleeping habits. But it wasn’t a pretty picture. 

Erza stared at the tangled blanket that Violet had left behind. She had made no indication what the dream had been about. Erza knew the girl probably had a lifetime of bad experience to choose from. She felt her heart soften. 

“And what the hell was that?” 

Erza turned to see Natsu and Grey getting dangerously close to each other. She stood smoothly, ready to break it up. 

“Grey, clam down,” Lucy said. 

“Natsu was trying to get over to her.” Grey said, “You should of seen him-” 

“Then she would have seen me stop when you told me too.” Natsu protested. 

“It shouldn't have been an issue in the first place.” 

“Stop it!” all three turned to Erza with mixed expressions. She took a deep breath. She didn't want to deal with bickering on top of everything else. 

“I just wanted to get a closer look,” Natsu said, dropping his eyes, accepting defeat. 

Erza’s gaze softened. Wouldn't she have done the same? If it was her who had been ordered to stay away, wouldn't she want to help Violet even more than before? 

“I’m sure you had good intentions.” she said slowly. “But you promised us you wouldn't try to approach her.” 

Natsu’s mouth opened, then closed, he looked down to Happy. 

Erza realized she was missing something. 

“Is there a problem?” 

Natsu took a deep breath. “I know I told you that I wouldn't talk to her.” he said “but..I promised Gramps that I would.” 

Everyone froze. 

Erza’s hands came up to pinch the bridge of her nose. It all made sense now. The master had sent Natsu along for some kind of forced bonding between the two of them. 

It was clear to everyone that if Violet was going to heal, she would have to come to terms with whatever it was that had really happened in the woods. And that meant she had to stop avoiding Natsu. That wasn’t something that she was going to do on her own. Erza had known that Violet and Natsu would eventually have to talk it out, but she’d been assuming it was better to wait, to let things cool down. Obviously the master thought otherwise. 

Erza looked up to see the others processing in their own ways. For them, as it was with her, the idea that Natsu was lying was out of the question. He wouldn't tackle something so serious without direction. And he definitely wouldn't spit on the master’s name by using him as an excuse. 

But the knowledge that this oath was binding opened up a whole other world of problems. 

“I think he should.” Lucy said, breaking the silence. 

No one seemed more surprised than Natsu. “What?” 

“You should talk to her,” Lucy said, a little more confident this time. “She was all jittery around the rest of us a few days ago, but she’s more comfortable with us now. All because she had to be around us. If she could do the same with Natsu…” her voice wavered, and then fizzled out, the first sign that she knew the two situations might not be the same. 

Violet had not attacked the others as she had Natsu. 

They had not attacked her back. 

“I guess it’s worth a shot.” Grey said, “if it’s what Gramps wants…” he shrugged. The master’s approval was the final nail in the coffin. They all knew it. 

But how to tell Violet? 

They all jumped when there was a knock on the door. Erza’s first assumption was Violet, but she could sense no magical energy. “Come in.” she said cautiously. 

The door opened to reveal Topaz. “Sorry to interrupt.” she said, “We’ve made breakfast for you if you want it.” 

The unfinished conversation hung in the air around them, but Erza knew it would be near impossible to keep the boys focused when there was food waiting for them. 

“We’ll be down in a moment.” she said. 

Topaz nodded, and closed the door. 

“We’ll continue this later.” Erza sighed. 

*Violet's POV*

I didn’t breath until the bathroom door was securely locked behind me. I couldn't believe I had let that happen. I should have known better than to allow myself to sleep. It was foolish to think that I would get off easy. And now I had paid the price. 

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. 

I leaned against the door and sunk to the floor with my hands over my ears. My talk with Topaz and Kaze had turned me complacent. I had become too relaxed after getting everything off my chest. I wasn’t out of the woods yet. Last night proved as much. 

And the way they had looked at me. An involuntary shiver ran down my spine at the memory. I had made the mistake of making eye contact with Natsu. The mistake of noticing Grey forcing him back. What would have happened to me if he had come closer? I didn't want to think about it. I didn’t want to think about any of it. 

I forced myself to take slow, deep breaths. My mind was still buzzing from the dreams I’d had, and the latest incident with the Fairies had only wound me up more. They would be expecting me back soon. I had to pack up my stuff, and I wanted more time with Topaz and Kaze before going back to the guild hall. I couldn't spend the whole morning in the bathroom. I had to keep control. 

As soon as I’d made the decision to start putting myself back together, there was a knock on the door. A froze. 

Too soon. I’m not ready yet. 

“Violet?” 

It was Lucy who spoke, but I could sense that the others were with her too, the whole gang waiting on the other side of the door. 

I gathered my courage. 

“Yes?” 

“Topaz came by to call us for breakfast.” Lucy explained, “we’re going now, but you can join us when you're ready.” 

I nearly cried with relief. A few more minutes to figure things out. 

“alright then.” 

“See you soon.” 

And then they all moved on, fading from the reaches of my magic. The idea of seeing Topaz again made for further motivation, and I pulled myself up from the floor, staring at myself in the mirror. 

I regretted not bothering to change out of my clothes now, as they were all rumpled from all of the trashing that I had surely done that night. Lucy’s pony tale had fallen, and the hair tie was impossibly tangled inside the mess of cowlicks. 

I did my best to tame it with my fingers, then used the hair covered elastic to hide the mess in a low pony. I wasn’t sure how much time had passed since Lucy had called me through the door, but I knew it would be rude to keep them waiting much longer, so I took a deep breath and exited the bathroom. 

I made my way down the stairs and back to the main hall of the house. I heard voices coming from the same room that I had hidden in the night before, and took a deep breath before approaching the open door. 

Inside I saw that the others were just as crumpled as me, and I knew that my appearance would fit right in among the other’s bed head and crinkled pajamas. Especially with Grey’s less than appropriate sleeping attire. 

Topaz was the first to see me, and waved me over. I took a deep breath before entering the room, dropping my eyes to the floor as others found their way to me. I stumbled into a seat between Lucy and the door and settled in as Kaze dropped a large plate of thick french toast slices in front of me. 

“I hope you all slept well.” Topaz said brightly. 

I felt several stomachs flip, but our hosts didn’t seem to notice. 

“Once you’ve eaten and packed we’ll get you the money and send you on your way.” 

“Money?” I asked. I wasn’t the only one confused. 

“I do believe our job request offered 200,000 jewl.” Topaz said casually. 

“But I thought…” 

“We wouldn't promise something we’re not willing to give.” Topaz said. I noticed her amusement. “Besides, it’s not really ours, Kaze stole it from Justice Valarie.” 

So it was the money that had been paid in return for assassinations. My reaction didn’t go unnoticed. 

“You don't have to take it if you don’t want it.” Topaz said, “but I can think of no better way to spend it then to put you and August back on your feet.” 

I opened my mouth, then closed it again. It did seem like the perfect little rebellion. “We’ll take it then.” I said, “Thank you.” 

Topaz smiled brightly. 

I was silent for the rest of the meal, but the others did more than enough talking for me. I could tell that both parties respected the other greatly. It gave me hope for August and I. if the fairies could easily interact with these strangers who were in the same boat as me, then perhaps there was hope for us yet. 

When breakfast was finally over, the others started preparing to go pack our things and be on our way, but Topaz had one last request. “I know I stole Violet away for quite a while last night.” she said. “If you don’t mind I would like to talk to the rest of you alone as well.” 

The offer took everyone by surprise, but no one wanted to decline. 

I took a deep breath, trying not to think about what exactly they were going to talk about in my absence. “I’ll wait up stairs then.” I said. 

No one said anything as I stood numbly and left the room alone.


	52. FIFTY TWO

*Lucy's POV*

Lucy turned to watch Violet go before returning her gaze to the near strangers in front of her. After so much time at Fairy Tail, she had become used to interacting with clients. But there was definitely something different about Topaz and Kaze. something about the way their eyes never seemed to settle on anything for more than a sector, the way their bodies were always tensed, catlike and ready to strike or run at any given moment. 

It was the same way that Violet and August looked. 

“What did you want to tell us?” Erza asked. 

All eyes turned to Topaz, who took in a long breath. “I’m sure having someone like Violet under your roof is uncharted territory for most of your guild.” she started, “so I thought I’d give you a little advice,” and then, as an afterthought, “if you’re willing to take it.” 

She looked up, and took the Fairies’ silence as encouragement to continue. 

“Justice Valkyrie doesn't work the same way that the rest of the world does.” Topaz said, “that’s obvious to any outsider, but for those who have been in there their whole lives... They really don’t know any different. Everything will be strange to them.” 

Lucy looked carefully at the others. They all seemed to already understand this, even if they had learned it the hard way by watching Violet react to things over the last few days. 

Lucy knew that the atmosphere inside Fairy Tail didn’t exactly resemble the real world either, but then she realized that it was probably an even bigger jump for Violet, moving from guild on one edge of reality to one on the other. Suddenly her constant confusion was almost understandable. 

“There are things she’s not going to understand.” Topaz said, “as I’m sure you’ve already seen, but there is one thing that I recommend you are careful about telling her.” 

“Which is?” Erza prompted. 

“What it really means to kill.” 

“She already knows.'' 

The protest had come from Natsu of all places. Topaz looked at him as though for the first time. “She doesn't want to kill us anymore.” he said, “she said so herself.” 

Lucy took this to mean that she had in fact surrendered voluntarily in the woods. But with her injuries as they were...she may not have had much of a choice. Lucy knew better than most that Natsu was a force to be reckoned with. 

“That’s true.” Topaz said cautiously, “but there’s a difference between realizing that you don’t want to kill those you’ve grown attached to, and realizing what it means to dispose of strangers. Violet has yet to experience first hand what grief can do to someone, and when she finds out-” 

“She’ll realize how much wrong she’s done.” Grey finished, staring at the floor. 

Topaz nodded solemnly. “It’s something that must be done.” she said, “but she should find out on her own, and once she does…” she reached into her front pocket and withdrew an envelope. “Someone from her guild will have to show her the contents of this envelope.'' She offered it to Erza. 

“What is it?” she said, cautiously taking it and looking at the black front. 

“For now it’s for your guild master.” Topaz said, “a letter from Kaze and I to him. But it also contains information about Violet.” 

“What kind of information?” Grey said, finally looking up. 

“What really happened to her parents before she was brought to Justice Valkyrie.” 

Erza’s eyes returned to the envelope, she seemed to be holding it more gently than before. 

“I trust you’ll only give it to her when she’s ready.” Topaz’s words were causal, but Lucy sensed a kind of warning hidden in them. “From what Violet told us last night, it’s clear she has a love for your guild. I won't pretend to know how your rules work, but if she could be allowed to stay it might be the best place for her and August moving forward.” 

Lucy’s mouth opened, then closed again. She had been assuming that Violet had been sticking by the guild because she had nowhere else to go. But could it be that she truly wanted to belong there again? 

“I do know one thing.” Topaz said, “There are currently members that she is no longer comfortable around.” her words were vague, but her eyes were fixed on Natsu. “I encouraged her to attempt to mend those relationships. I know it’s not for me to tell you whether or not to forgive someone but…” she finally let her eyes drop. “I know what I would do.” 

A shiver ran down Lucy’s spine. Though Topaz didn’t know it, Natsu rejecting Violet wasn’t really something they would have to worry about. As far as Lucy could tell, Natsu had never blamed her for what happened in the first place, and thus had nothing to forgive. She was sure that Topaz’s warning would only serve as further encouragement for him to attempt to talk to Violet. 

“Well,” Topaz said, dispelling the heavy conversation at once. “I won't keep you any longer. I know you have a long journey back.” 

And just like that they all returned to the room that they had slept in the night before to pack. The group moved up the stairs slowly, the effects of the conversation weaning on all of them differently. 

Lucy was the first to the room. She had just enough time to peek through the doorway and see Violet with her back to them, holding her left wrist, staring at the emblem there. 

For just a moment Lucy was privy to the way Violet looked when alone, before the loud footfalls of the others alerted her to their presence. Then Lucy saw the deep breath, and the stiffening of the spine, the way the now perfectly brushed hair felt neatly in line to hide her face. The transition from a normal person to the Violet that she had come to know. It made her heart ache to watch. 

Violet stood and turned to face them, her eyes flicking from face to face as she read their emotions. She took a deep breath, seeming to come to a decision. “I need some fresh air.” she said. “I’ll meet you outside.” and she shouldered her bag and left without another word. 

It was clear to everyone that she was running away, perhaps still shaken up over the manner in which she had been awoken only an hour or so before. Lucy called out a “see you later” before turning back to the others, who had already begun throwing their things back into their packs. 

Lucy knelt at her bed roll and when about her own packing process. She had been so sure that things had been getting better with Violet. She managed to have an almost normal conversation the day before. But now it all seemed for nothing. 

And Lucy couldn't pretend she didn’t know why. Whenever Natsu was in the room Violet only seemed to give herself two options, flee immediately, or close herself up so tightly that no one would see what was really going on. 

There seemed to be no solution. Unless…

Lucy looked back toward the door. Natsu was still standing there, rooted to the same stop that he had been when Violet had left. Lucy got to her feet as well, approaching him slowly. She was aware that Erza and Grey had paused in their endeavors to watch her, but she didn’t care. 

“You should go after her.” Lucy said. 

Natsu’s eyes focused on her, not quite believing. She knew he wanted to. He looked to the others, who must have given him the affirmative, because he let out a wide smile before turning on the spot and walking down the hall.


	53. FIFTY THREE

*Violet's POV*

I drug my feet on the way down the stairs. I didn’t want to be around the fairies. But I didn't exactly want to be away from them either. It felt that if I took as long as possible on my departure then I could somehow maintain both states at the same time. 

But I knew it was impossible. 

When I was only half way down I saw Topaz watching me from the bottom. I sped up my pace to meet her. 

“Is something wrong?” she asked as I came to a halt at the base of the stairs. 

“No, nothing like that.” I said, “just wanted some air.” 

Topaz raised an eyebrow. 

“Okay so I’m avoiding them.” I admitted. “I need a minute before the train ride.” 

But rather than scold me, Topaz smiled. “It doesn't matter to me what you do.” she said, “thought I was hoping to catch you alone.” 

“You...you where?” 

“I wanted to give you this.” she reached under her collar and pulled out a small blue green crystal on a chain. “It’s a communication lacrima. I have the other in my desk. If things don’t work out for you with a Fairy Tail, let me know. Kaze and I can come get you.” 

I took the chain from her hands carefully and pulled it over my head. “Thank you.” 

“Take care.” 

And with that she turned and walked back in the direction of her office. 

I took a deep breath and turned towards the door, tucking the lacrima under my shirt as I did so. The idea of having a backup plan was comforting. But the idea that I might need one wasn’t. 

I shook my head as I stepped out the front door and onto the house’s beautiful wraparound porch. The point of this little escapade was to clear my mind, not fill it with even more stressful things. 

When we got back to the guild hall I would have to explain to the master what we had seen, and interaction I wasn’t looking forward to. At least I had the prospect of more time with August to look forward to. There hadn't been enough time to figure out if he really had a plan before. If I was lucky we would get the chance to talk alone, go over everything that has happened since I left with Natsu for that job. 

My attention was drawn away from my thoughts when I heard the door open and close a few feet to my left. My first assumption was that Topaz had come to keep me company, but a moment later a sickeningly familiar aura hit me. I felt my hair stand up on end as my mouth turned dry. 

Natsu. 

I felt my body locking up. Run away. Fight him. The opposing urges left me routed to the spot, unable to take either action. I was unsure if he knew I had noticed him. Surely he knew that the door would be loud enough to get my attention. Why didn’t he speak? Unless he expected me to go first. I didn’t know what to do. How had he even been allowed out here with me in the first place? There was no way he would have gotten past Grey and Erza with all his limbs intact. 

And still he said nothing. 

I forced lungs to take in air. If he wasn’t going to speak I would have to. Remind him of his promise. Send him back. Send him away from me. 

With great effort I pulled my tongue down from the roof of my mouth. “Did Topaz send you?” I had intended to sound cold and detached, but the effort fell flat. I felt like a frightened child. 

Natsu didn’t miss the quiver in my voice, but he seemed to be more focused on the fact that I hadn’t turned to face him. He took a step forward, hoping to elicit a response. 

I felt a shiver run up my spine, but didn’t move. 

He took another step, close enough to touch me now. I felt my body preparing to leap away should he try anything. 

“She didn’t send me.” was all he said. 

Make him leave. Sound mean. Sound scary. 

“Then who did?” this time the tone was a little closer to what I wanted. But Natsu didn’t react. 

“Gramps.” he said matter of factly. 

The parts of my body that had loosened in preparation to run suddenly became stiff again. The guild master? Several pieces of information came together in my head. “That’s why he sent you with us isn't it.” stupid old man. 

“Uh...yeah.” Natsu said. I realized that my disinterest was affecting him now. I was dumping too much of the conversation on him. He couldn't keep it a float on his own. But it wasn’t enough to make him give up. “He thinks I should talk to you.” 

No more questions. End the conversation. Give him nothing else to talk about and he’ll leave. 

“We have nothing to talk about.” 

Both of us knew it was a lie. But the cold shoulder spawned no malice in Natsu. If anything he seemed more determined to get over my walls, to break them down. He seemed to believe that if he stared at my crumbling exterior for long enough, it would suddenly become transparent. And I would be inclined to agree. But what he found inside would not be the Violet he had been looking for. 

I had to fight him off for as long as I could. 

“Listen,” he said, “What happened in the woods-” 

“I don’t want to talk about it!” my voice failed me on the last word, threatening to devolve into a sob. 

Shock. Concern. The desire to comfort. 

Damn it. 

Detached. I had been trying to be detached. But I couldn't let him talk about it. I had only just mentioned it to Topaz the night before, but the memory of it was too bright, the wounds too fresh, too new, to discuss it with Natsu. He, who had held my life in his hands, and then thrown it back in my face. I couldn't let him go there. And yet...my outburst had been a mistake. 

I had set gears to turn in his head. He was realizing now, perhaps for the first time, how much damage had really been done in those woods. And I was forced to feel the weight of his realization along with him. I pushed it away, wishing again that I could strip myself of magic. Wishing that he had killed me like he was supposed to. 

He took a step closer. Now all I had to do was turn my head, and I would see him. He could lean to his right just a few inches and his arm would meet mine. I wanted to run far away. I wanted to stay there forever. 

I shook my head, allowing hair to shield me before he could think to look at my face. I didn’t want to talk to him about the woods. But I would feel pins and needles prodding at my heart. Memories of times when we had spoken almost without fear. And always, his aura, like a beating heart. Filled with something. Something I couldn’t quite place. It felt like pity, but lighter and more dense. A kind of pity that was waiting on the balls of its feet. 

I had no name for it. 

“If you don’t want to talk that’s fine.” Natsu said, though I could tell he wasn’t happy about it. “We’ll just stand here.” 

Coming from anyone else the silence would have been a punishment. But I knew that this was his way of being kind. He was caving to my pleas for silence. And I was too relieved to realize it might have been better if he had just left. 

I stared out at Topaz’s lawn, and the road beyond it. The road that would take us back to our respective homes. August for me, and Fairy Tail for Natsu. The minutes passed, and I found my body relaxing in spite of itself. I kept on waiting for Natsu to break his silence, for him to bring up something painful, but he didn’t. 

And still that feeling was there. The not-quite pity seemed to be bleeding out of him, and filling the air with something that made me want to cry and laugh at the same time. 

I searched through my memories for any kind of definition for the emotion. But quickly realized it wasn’t something I had seen in large doses. I thought of Erza’s constant cycle. Pity and denial. Pity and denial. What is the feeling she had been trying to achieve? Pity’s apprehension? It was a determination. An intensity. I didn’t understand. 

But I knew how to get the answer. I stood there for several minutes. 

It’s a bad idea. 

I want to know the answer. 

The conflicting desires chased another though my mind and around my heart, and all the while Natsu’s presence seemed to be growing more intense. The silence grew louder. My mind stilled. I made my decision. 

“Hey Natsu?” 

The words fell out of my mouth as soon as I decided to speak. I was on high alert, but too focused on the task at hand to even consider regret. 

He tensed in surprise, then relaxed just as easily, only to have apprehension creeping back in. “Yeah?” 

I hadn’t thought this far ahead. “Well I…” my mouth was suddenly dry. I felt him looking at me, “Well, I was just wondering...your aura… I mean what you’re feeling…” I took a deep breath. “I don't know what it’s called.” I blurted. 

He stared at me. Whatever he had expected me to say, this wasn’t it.

“You want to know the name of what I’m feeling right now?” 

I noticed that there was a little gap in my hair curtain, just enough for him to see my eyes. I kept them focused on the peeling paint on the porch rail and gave a single nod, biting my lip.

He let out a deep sigh, and I could sense him preparing the answer. The name of the not-quite pity. 

“Violet…” my own name sent a shiver up my spine. “It’s called compassion.”

I looked up at him then, locking eyes for the first time since he had removed my mask. My mouth opened, preparing words that even I wasn’t yet privy too. 

“You mean-” 

The door behind Natsu burst open, and the rest of the fairies poured out. I closed my mouth and returned my gaze to my shoes. 

I had my answer.


	54. FIFTY FOUR

*Makarov's POV*

Master Makarov looked out at the guild from his usual spot on top of the counter. A few minutes before, August had burst through the door. His appearance had gone unnoticed by many of the usual members, but Makarov knew what it ment. 

The boy hadn't run after all. It seemed the guild had won him over. 

The master wasn’t surprised enough to be relieved, thought the sight of the guild’s newest addition did give him some ease. The appearance of August combined with the relatively quiet atmosphere of the guild in it’s rowdiest members’ absence made him feel almost surreal. But that didn’t mean the master wasn’t eagerly awaiting the others’ return. 

He had been expecting that they would spend the night in Hargeon, but now that the first twenty four hours were coming to a close, he was starting to wonder when they would be returning. He was curious to know who had really sent the job request. 

curious to see what had become of his talk with Natsu. 

The master's eyes were drawn to the door again when he noticed Gajeel enter. The man lingered there for a moment, scanning the crowd, his eyes finally falling on August who, rather than sulking at his usual spot at the bar, had opted for a table near the center of the room. Gajeel watched him for a few moments before turning away and walking toward the master instead. 

The old man watched him approach silently, waiting for Gajeel to be the first to speak. 

“Didn’t get the chance to check in with you last night.” Gajeel said, “thought you might want to hear how it went.” 

The offer wasn’t what the master had been expecting, but he took it in stride. “If you don’t mind,” he said, hopping down from the bar, “let’s go to my office.” 

Gajeel followed him casually, but didn’t miss the way August was watching them disappear behind the bar from his seat in the middle of the hall. The master strode into his office without looking to see if Gajeel was following, sitting down at his desk and leaving the door open for the younger man to close. 

“How did it go?” he asked once they had both found their seats. 

“Fine I guess,” Gajeel shrugged, completely at ease under the master’s watchful gaze. “He didn’t talk about anything sensitive. Once I got him out the door, it was just the same as before everythin’ went down with Natsu and the kid.” 

“And before you got out the door?” 

Gajeel let out a half hearted smile, his hand idly creeping up to scratch the back of his neck. “Well it wasn’t pretty, but I’ll get over it.” 

The master raised an eyebrow. 

“He went for some low blows is all.” Gajeel said, “probably trying to pick a fight. He backed off when I didn’t go for it though.” 

The master stroked his beard slowly. Quick to anger, but quick to simmer down too. Not the worst traits to have. 

“Whatcha say to him when he came back in anyway?” Gajeel asked conversationally. 

“I took his Lacrama bracelet away.” the master said, his mind still elsewhere. 

“You what?” 

The master blinked. “Well he couldn't very well sleep in my office forever.” he said, “I let him go home.” 

Gajeel seemed on the verge of protest, but then broke out into a grin. “Well it looks like it worked. He’s still here isn't’ he?” 

“It would seem so.” 

“So are you gonna take Violet's lacrima too then?” 

The master let out a sigh. “I’ve yet to decide.” 

It wasn’t what Gajeel had been expecting. “You don’t trust her do you?” 

The master didn’t want to respond to such an absolute, but he didn't want to dodge the question entirely either. “As soon as August received his archive magic he started to see the flaws in Justice Valerie. But Violet...the thought that her guild could have been bad all along is still a new idea to her.” 

“Guess I hadn’t thought of it that way.” Gajeel sighed. 

“August has been dealing with his sudden reveal of identity by convincing himself he doesn't enjoy Fairy Tail. lying to himself, as instantly and flawlessly as he once lied to others. But it would appear that the truth came out when he returned to the guild on his own volition this morning.” 

“So we give Violet that same choice right, get her to choose Fairy Tail over running.” 

“It’s not that simple.” the master said. Because Violet didn’t want to run. She wanted to hide. She too had found in Fairy Tail what she had not felt anywhere else. But rather than convince herself she didn’t want it, she convinced herself that it didn’t want her. 

“It would seem that Violet’s current coping mechanism is to isolate herself.” the master said. She had to let someone over those walls before they crushed her. 

“Well use August then.” Gajeel said. 

“Pardon?” 

“If she’s cutting herself off, then use someone she already trusts to convince her to stay.” 

The answer seemed simple enough. The master started to smile. If anyone could help Violet it would be August. Lead him in the right direction and she would follow. It was the perfect plan. 

As long as August stayed on the right path.

*Violet's POV*

I was determined not to look behind me on the walk back to the train. I knew that Natsu and the others were fowling a few yards behind me, lingering just on the border of my ear shot. 

It was obvious who they were talking about. I didn’t want to know what they were saying. I had already embarrassed myself enough for an entire lifetime on that porch. 

Asking Natsu what his emotions were called... Stupid. Now I seemed like even more of a socially stunted freak than they already thought I was. Surely now it can't get any worse. 

And yet...the tone of his voice… when he spoke, it echoed back and forth in my head, the taste of the sound almost as strong as the words themselves. Violet, it’s called comparison. Violet, it’s called companion. Just the memory of it sent a shiver down my spine. 

When he had given his answer, he hadn’t been mocking me. Nor had there been pity, and thus nothing negative to deny. It had been compassion in him then too. And I wondered if it had always been there, mixed in with that power I had always felt boiling under the surface. I’d come face to face with that power in those woods alright. But it hadn’t been during the battle. It had been when he lifted his hand as if to strike me, and brought it down to give comfort.

Comfort I didn’t want. 

And that scared me more than all the fire in the world.


	55. FIFTY FIVE

*Violet's POV*

I reached the steps that lead up to the train station and hesitated. I had been forging ahead of the others to avoid talking with them. I didn’t want to know how much Natsu had shared about our conversation. I didn’t want to be expected to know, in hope that no one would bring it up. 

I glanced over my shoulder to see how far back they were, but once I did I saw that they were all staring at me. I lost my nerve. I turned back to the train station and walked up the steps and thought of the door. We all had our tickets. We would end up on the same train. If they were that interested in keeping track of me in the meantime then they could quicken their pace on their own. 

I refused to appear like I was dependent on them for anything. It was unsightly to expect their watchful gaze. To expect their help. I would take what I was given, but I didn’t feel that I was asking for it. Or appear like I needed it, thought in truth in this guild the two were practically one and the same. 

I made my way through the train station carefully, staying as far away from the fairies as I could while still allowing them to see where I was going. Upon finding the correct platform I turned and made eye contact with Erza before choosing the car and walking in. I knew it was probably rude not to wait for them properly, but I told myself I didn’t care. 

I didn’t want to be close to them. I didn’t want to feel what they felt any stronger than I had to, compassion or pity didn’t matter at the moment, they were both strong and distracting, and I was tired and ready to return to August. 

I walked down the train car alone and sat in an empty compartment halfway down the car, just like I usually did when August was with me. If I distanced myself from my surroundings then I could almost believe that this was just a normal job. That August would be coming to join me at any moment, ready to return to one of Justice Valkyrie compounds after a quick night job and early morning clean up. 

But my fantasies were shattered when I sensed the Fairies entering the train. I had my back to them and made no move to the turn. Instead I turned to the window and watched their reflecting past behind me in the glass. Erza was in the lead, with Natsu and Happy in the back, the former being the least enthusiastic about the prospect of transportation. 

They chose a compartment on the opposite side of the aisle as mine, and a few farther down the train. After spending some time playing musical train seats and talking in low voices I saw Lucy break away from the group and walk toward me. 

I reminded myself to appear welcoming when she cleared her thoughts behind me. I turned and looked at her, inviting her to continue. 

“You mind if I sit with you?” she asked. 

I gestured to the seat next to me. Of all the people that they could have sent over, I figured Lucy was probably the one I had been hoping for. Not jittery like Grey or too prying like Erza. and there were a variety of problems with Natsu, though all were negated by his inability to do much of anything while on the train. 

Lucy said nothing to me, but it didn’t seem awkward. Both of us were watching the other passengers out of the coroner of our eyes. I found myself wondering if Lucy enjoyed people watching. She seemed like the type who would, being friendly and interested in how people lived their lives. I wondered if she was any good at it. I knew I was, but that was for entirely different reasons. The idea of being good at something that survived no objective purpose was strange to me, but I didn’t pursue it further. A lot of things were strange to me these days. 

My thoughts were interrupted when a man stopped in the aisle next to our compartment. My first thought was of the instance on the train ride the day before when Grey had scared away a creepy stranger. But my fears were dispelled when I saw a small child peering at us from around the legs of who I now assumed was his father. 

“Would you ladies mind if we sit across from you?” he asked, “everywhere else is full.” 

As expected Lucy answered the affirmative, and the man and his child settled into the seats facing ours. As they moved into the tiny area I pulled my legs up to my chest, resting my heels on the edge of the seat to conserve the valuable leg room. Despite appearing cramped, the compact position helped me relax a little more, as if taking up less physical space could also limit the amount of space I held in the minds of those around me. 

Despite not originally considering it, ideal I realized the man and his son were a blessing in disguise. With them here to listen in there could be no discussing of difficult topics. I took a deep breath and reached up to push the hair out of my face. Maybe this was going to be an easy train ride after all. 

“Whoa!” 

I looked down to see the child staring at me. Perhaps I had spoken too soon. He was amazed, elated, couldn't believe his luck, his joy seemed too great for his tiny body to hold in, and he began to bounce up and down in his seat. 

“If something is wrong?” asked Lucy, naturally jumping in to save me from speaking. I wished she didn’t have to, but also attempted to thank her with my eyes. 

“Are you guys wizards?!” 

The pisces fell together in Lucy’s head, and she settled into a kind of routine. She had been asked this question before, and often. She launched into a mini speech about Fairy Tail and spirits, and the boy watched with wide eyes. I realized now that he must have seen the mark on my wrist when I had brushed my hair aside. I guessed things like that happened a lot for members of official guilds. 

The boy was staring at Lucy hanging on every word, the father was listening, but his eyes weren’t on Lucy but his son, as if one’s joy could bleed into the other’s regardless of the original source. 

“What’s your magic?” I looked down to see the boy looking up at me expectantly. Lucy became nervous, preparing to jump in with some lie or distraction, but I beat her to it. 

“Silver tongue.” I said. It was unlikely that the boy and his father would know exactly what that meant. “I can make people confused or sleepy in battle, or alert and focused for other things.” 

“For real Awesome!” 

They boy babbled on about what types of magic he thought were cool, then moved on to interrogate us about what it was like to do wizarding work. Lucy took the brunt of the conversation, leaving me with agreeable nods and occasional one word answers. 

The entire time Lucy seemed wary of me, as if expecting me to break at any moment. Not for the first time, I wondered what exactly Natsu had told her about our encounter in the woods. I supposed it was possible that I would have to find out someday, but not now. 

The train pushed onward across the country side, nearing Magnolia slowly but steadily, nearing the closest thing I had to a home.


	56. FIFTY SIX

*Violet's POV*

Despite my fears, Natsu made no attempt to talk to me after disembarking the train. Indeed I stayed with Lucy, weather by design or by coincidence, the two of us ended up separated from the rest of the group. 

Lucy made no attempt to wait for them on the platform, nor as we excited the train station. I followed her lead. I wasn’t too keen on seeing Natsu again anyway. As we started walking, I felt in her the familiar tug of need for conversation. I prepared myself for her to speak before realizing it was probably my turn to do so, after all, she had spent most of the train ride conversing with the man and his son about a variety of topics that could only have been related to each other in the eyes of a child. 

“Thanks for helping me out back there,” I said. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Lucy turn to see if I was looking at her, but kept my eyes on the ground as I spoke, “I’m not that good at talking to people, especially strangers.” 

No surprise there. 

“It was no big deal,” Lucy said, and I knew that she meant it. But there was something else, she had wanted me to interact more, despite not minding that I didn’t. 

“I was probably just like that when I was a kid.” 

“Yeah?” It was the first time that I would be hearing of Lucy's childhood. Having never been a target, she had not been subjected to the same amount of research that the others had, and what little I did know about her days before Fairy Tail came from what I knew about Gajeel, and the motivation behind the attack of Phantom Lord many years prior. 

“I’ve wanted to join Fairy Tail almost as soon as I heard about it,” she said, “If a real life wizard had talked to me then I would have been excited to.” 

“I guess I never thought about that.” I said, careful to keep my eyes trained on the pavement beneath my feet. “There’s never really been a time when I didn’t have magic. Not that I can remember much at least.” 

Lucy opened her mouth to say something, but cut herself off when we reached the entrance to the gild hall. I risked a glance over my shoulder to see the rest of the entourage a couple hundred yards farther down the road. 

When I faced the font, I saw that Lucy had already opened the door, and was holding it open, waiting for me to enter. I took a deep breath and did so, feeling Fairy Tail’s signature aura wash over me. I paused just inside the doorway for a moment as I realized that in the depths of Fairy Tail's general mood was the same thing that I had felt in Natsu only a few hours previously. Compassion. Now that I had the name for it I seemed to be feeling it everywhere. It made my magic even more distracting than before. 

The first thing I did upon getting my bearings was search for August. My eyes instantly went to the bar where he had been singing last time I’d seen him, but he wasn’t there. A quick scan of the guild hall showed me that he was sitting with Gajeel at one of the tables in the middle of the room, talking and laughing as if nothing had happened. If it didn’t know any better I would have said that he was the same August that had been talking with them before the disaster in the woods, the perfect little socialite who could steer the conversion wherever he wanted to gain information. 

But this time it was different. I should see it in the way his shoulders were relaxed rather than alert. He wasn’t scheming or concentrating. He was letting go, being free. I had only ever seen him like that when he was talking to me. I tried to ignore the little thorn of jealousy that pierced my heart. August was allowed to have friends. He didn’t belong to me. 

And yet…

I had spent my whole trip to Hargeon waiting for the moment that I would return to him. For the moment that I could turn away from the enemy and spend my time with someone who was safe. Someone who wasn’t confusing. Someone who understood me.

And as far as I could tell it looked he had been enjoying himself in my absence. I swallowed hard. It was unfair to blame August for being happy, especially when it was my own fault that he was suffering. It only made sense that the guild would be quicker to forgive him. He hadn’t tried to kill anyone. 

The rest of the group entered behind us, drawing the attention of some nearby members, August among them. He looked up at me and smiled. I tried to return the gesture as he excused himself from the conversation and came to meet me. 

“How did it go?” 

He was relaxed, fresh, and felt that he had started anew. It was nothing like when I had seen him last. “Uh...good.” I said, trying to remember how to be causal. 

Erza appeared at my side as the others spread out through the guild hall. “I can go tell the master what happened if you want to stay out here.” she offered. 

I looked up, I had been expecting a grueling debrief. “You sure you can do it alone?” 

She nodded. She had been around this block before. She knew what the master was and wasn’t okay with. But there was something else, something that she wanted to talk to him about without me present. I fingered if it was best to let it go. 

“Okay then, thanks.” 

Erza gave August a curt nod and then turned toward the master’s office, disappearing behind the bar. August and I watched her go, and then turned back to each other , almost awkwardly. Since when had I been awkward with August? “So how did it go?” he asked. 

“We should probably sit down.” 

He nodded and he found a little table along the back wall where no one would bother us. I saw some of the fairies looking our way from time to time, but none of them made a move to listen in. They seemed to respect August and I’s first true reunion. It wasn’t just that they knew it would be wrong to listen in, they didn’t want to. 

“I tried to convince the master not to let him go.” August said. 

I blinked, “not to let who-oh.” I looked down at the table. So August had known about Natsu. “That’s okay, it wasn’t that bad, once I got used to it.” 

“Did he stay away?” August said. 

“Mostly.” I nodded, “the other’s made sure of it, it wasn’t until after Topaz-” 

“Topaz?” 

I let out a sigh. 

“Maybe I should start at the beginning.” 

And that's what I did. More or less. I had been considering for some time if I would tell him what had happened before the job. The night that I had stayed at Lucy’s. But I realized that I still didn’t really know what his plan moving forward was, and I didn’t want to taint it with emotions that I myself was still confused about. So I only spoke in hard facts, leaving out the night at Lucy’s entirely. 

I told him about Topaz and Kaze, and the story they had told me, how I had been able to confide in them, and then Natsu’s confession that the master had told him to talk to me. I told August that I had let him stay with me on the porch. But I couldn't bear to mention what I’d asked him. The emotion Natsu had been pressing on me, as well as the subsequent explanation, they seemed to intimate an experience to share lightly. Especially when I didn’t know what the plan was.

I had to prepare myself to leave Fairy Tail now that August and I were back together. I had worked for an escape, not acceptance. My last few days had been a sad echo of what had come before, but I knew that staying with the guild was not a possibility. It simply wasn’t safe for anyone. 

I prepared myself for August so tell me as such, and I knew how I would agree, and then he would tell me the plan that would tear us away from another guild. 

“What happened on your end of things?” I asked.

he let out a deep breath, and then I felt him surging with the same question that had plagued me only a few minutes before. What was the plan going forward? Was it fair to share emotions? 

“What’s wrong?” I asked. 

August sighed sheepishly. “Nothing goes over your head.” he said. Then...a silence he used to gather courage. I learned forward, eager to hear what he didn’t want to tell me. “We need to talk about what we’re going to do now that they’re being less careful with us.” 

I swallowed. The exact conversation that I had known was coming, and yet didn’t want to have. 

“What was your plan?” I asked, “you said you had one the other day.” 

“I did.” he said, and my magic sought out the unspoken words. But now I don't know what to do. 

He was torn between fear of telling me the truth and disgust at the thought of telling me a lie. 

“You can tell me the old plan,” I offered, and we can go from there?” 

He nodded slowly, he saw it was a place to start. 

“I’m sure the old man told you that I was helping prepare them for war with Justice Valkyrie?” 

The idea sent a shiver down my spine, but I nodded. 

“I mean, it’s inevitable that they find out what happened eventually, and the fairies aren’t one to back down from a fight...but I knew it wouldn't be pretty. so...I thought we would let them go at each other, find some excuse to leave the battle, and then run away once they had destroyed each other. Once there was no one left to chase us.” 

It was a good plan. Exactly what I would have expected of August. But I knew that it was rooted in shame. It wasn’t just August that was tainting it. 

“We can’t leave them like that.” I said, speaking the words that both of us knew. 

“But I don’t know how else to get you out.” 

And he sounded so heart broken, so desperate for an answer. He wanted to be safe. He wanted us to be safe. But if we couldn't be free of Fairy Tail…

“You want to stay now.” I said, “something happened while I was gone and you want to stay.” 

August looked down as if this were a crime. He told me about his confrontation with Gajeel, how he had tried to pick a fight only to fail spectacularly. How he had returned to the master’s mind games, and realized he didn't want to leave. 

“I wasn’t going to tell you.” he said finally. “I didn’t want you...we can still find a way to get out.” 

“You think I want to leave…” I realized. “Oh August…” 

I reached forward to where his hand was curled on the table and put mine around it. He sat there for a moment, concentrating on the sensation that he wasn’t used to, reading me, knowing that he was being read. Perfectly connected. 

“You want to stay too,” he realized. 

I had been afraid to say it out loud, I had known he wouldn't believe me. But there was no denying my emotions. If we left, I could never let the guilt go. 

I retracted my hand and August let out a wide smile. “This might be the stupidest thing we’ve ever done.” he said. 

“But it’s also the best.” 

His smile widened, a real one, followed by a laugh. And then mine followed. We were going to stay at Fairy Tail. We were going to fight Justice Valkyrie. And we were going to do it together. 


	57. FIFTY SEVEN

*Erza’s POV*

Erza followed the master into his office, the weight of the letter she was caring for him seeming to increase noticeably with each step. Topaz had told her that the letter would fill him in on everything that she and Kaze had told them. But Erza knew it was more than that. There was something in that letter that Topaz had intended to be for only the master’s eyes. 

It was wrong to want to know what it said. But Erza couldn't help herself. She hoped the master would give her some clue. 

“So how did it go?” he asked, sending into his chair causally. 

Erza explained everything that had happened. The master listened attentively, giving nothing away about his true thoughts on the matter. “And Topaz gave me this,” she finished, reaching into her pocket and retrieving the letter. “It’s for you.” 

“Ah,” the master nodded, “thank you.” he took the letter and tucked it carefully away. Erza knew she should have expected as much. She tried to put it out of her mind. It was none of her business. 

She knew that having told him everything, and that in giving him the letter, that the conversation was over. But neither one of them moved to leave. 

“Was there something else?” the master asked. 

Erza sighed. There was no point in beating around the bush now. “Why did you send Natsu?”

The master seemed to be expecting this, he adjusted in his chair slowly. “This entire situation is delicate.” he said “But Violet’s relationships with the rest of the guild are even more so. If we want her to stay, we must start with the things that drew her in in the first place.” 

“And that’s Natsu.” Erza sighed. She had seen the way Violet looked at him before everything had happened. She knew it wasn’t uncommon for the younger members of the guild to consider him an older sibling of sorts. Is that what he could have become for her? Is that what he could be if they could get things back on track. 

“Violet chose to desert her previous guild on the premise that she didn’t want to kill Natsu.” the master said, “if we can mend their relationship now, perhaps we can also strengthen her conviction that Justice Valkyrie was a toxic place.” 

“Wait,” Erza said, “You’re not worried that she’s going back to them are you.” 

The master looked up at her, but said nothing. A silver ran down Erza’s back. It wasn’t even something she had considered before. But she saw now that the master was right. Violet ran to confront. To familiarity. And as long as she was estranged with the rest of the Fairy Tail, the only place she could consider as her own was the same place that had already taken so much from her. 

“It would be best if Violet finds a home here before her previous guild realizes something went wrong.” the master said, and Erza knew the conversation was over. 

“Right.” she took a deep breath, trying to quiet her mind. “I’ll leave you to that letter then.” she stood and exited the office, not quite sure if she was glad to leave or not. 

Erza entered the main room of the guild hall just in time to see Violet and August stand from a small table against the back all and walk toward a cluster of tables where several members were talking in loud voices. 

Violet looked up at Erza, her eyes narrowing. Erza knew the girl must be reading her aura, and felt suddenly exposed. She forced herself to relax. Silvertoung magic was a part of who Violet was. She probably won't even know how to interact with the world without it. There was no need to feel like she was stepping over any bounders. Erza had to convince himself of it. 

Whatever Violet saw in her must have been encouraging, as she said something to August who nodded, and then they broke away from each other , August joining Gajeel and the others and Violet walking toward Erza. 

Erza moved closer to the bar and took a seat, gesturing for Violet to join her. Carefully, the girl positioned herself on the stool to her right, looking uneasy. 

“You looked like you wanted to talk with me,” Erza said, knowing that Violet was often uncomfortable being the first to speak. 

“I wanted to thank you.” Violet amended slowly, “for talking to the master for me.” 

Erza blinked. She had thought nothing of it, not to mention she had to give him the letter, though she supposed Violet didn’t know about that. 

“It was no problem.” 

At this Violet shifted, making a practiced tilt forward so her hair would shield her face. She was hiding something. 

“Well I appreciate it anyway.” Violet said quietly. 

“You didn’t want to talk to him did you,” Erza realized. 

Violet seemed to shrink, her eyes fixed on the counter in front of her. “That obvious huh?” 

“Why don’t you like him?” Erza already had her suspicions, but she wanted to hear Violet say it. She seemed to have opened up at least a little bit since she had first returned to the guild hall with Natsu, perhaps a little push would be all she needed this time. 

But Violet seemed uncomfortable. “I just don’t.” she said. 

Well at least she wasn’t denying it. They sat in silence for a while before Erza realized she had something for Violet. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a drawstring velvet bag. “Topaz gave me your money.” she said, sliding it across the counter to Violet. 

She picked it up carefully, pulling it down into her lap. “Did you already split it up?” 

“No actually.” 

Violet looked at her then, just for a moment before shrinking back. 

“We talked about it…” Erza said, “and we thought that we could give it all to you and August.” 

Violet opened her mouth to protest, then froze for a moment, thinking better of whatever she had planned to say. “Thank you.” 

Erza sat with her in silence for another minute or so. She figured if Violet was too uncomfortable she always could leave, so in the meantime did her best to enjoy the girl’s company. 

“Erza?” 

“Yes?” 

Violet took a deep breath, preparing each word with care. “I was thinking...do you know where I could buy some new clothes?” 

It definitely hadn't been the type of question that Erza had been expecting, but she recovered quickly. “I know lots of places.” she said. Thought probably not as many as Lucy. Why wasn’t Violet asking her? “Is that what you’re going to do with the money?” 

“Some of it I think.” Violet said. “Everything I have, it’s just practical stuff, things that make sense on the job. I think...maybe if I got something that made me feel confident...I don’t know.” 

“I think it’s a great idea.” Erza said, suddenly understanding why Violet had come to her and not Lucy. she wasn’t looking for clothes per say, but a means of projecting confidence. An armor of sorts. Erza knew better than anyone that it wasn’t a solution in itself, but if pretty clothing could help Violet become comfortable enough to come out of her shell… “I can help you shop if you want.” 

“That’s okay.” Violet said, “I think it’s something I need to do alone… if I can,” added quickly. 

“I’m sure the master can come up with something.” Erza said. If it was clear she was making an effort to distance herself from Justice Valkyrie , he would be more than happy to let her go. But then, as far as Erza knew, there was no set uniform at her guild. There had to be something else, another reason that she wanted a change in wardrobe. 

“But you already know why.” Violet said quietly. 

Erza looked down, she was clearly frustrated. “Pardon?” 

Violet looked mortified, but she pushed on anyway. “I overheard you and Grey on the train.” she blurted. “I wasn’t sleeping until after you left. I know you know about the scars.” 

Erza blinked. 

“Violet, I knew about the scars before Grey brought them up. They’re nothing to be ashamed of-” 

“Grey said that too.” Violet said. She was staring at the counter in front of her, hands curling around themselves in her lap. “But he didn’t mean it. He was angry and I don’t know why. And you are too. Deep down.” 

Erza opened her mouth to protest, but Violet wasn’t done. 

“Maybe this clothes thing was a bad idea,” she said, “maybe it’s better to keep them hidden.” 

So that was the real reason behind it then. To stop being ashamed of the scars. Not only to distance herself from her previous guild, but to stop hiding her affiliation. 

“Violet, Grey and I might be angry, but it’s not at you.” 

She stiffened, and Erza knew she was using magic to confirm what she heard. It made Erza's heartache to think that she might have thought otherwise. It was as though...no. Violet didn’t want her pity. That much was clear. 

“You should get the clothes.” Erza said, “if you need any help, let me know.” 

Violet nodded slowly, still processing what she had been told. 

“Hey Vi!” Erza looked behind her to see August calling her from behind. 

Violet turned thankfully toward him. “The master gave us permission to go back to the apartment,” he said, stepping closer, “you still have to keep your lacrama so they can track you, but other than that we’re free to go.” 

“That’s great.” Violet said, but it was distracted. 

August's eyes darted over to Erza, finding an understanding that only came with years of knowing Violet. 

“It’s getting late,” he said, almost coldly, “I think we should head back now.” 

Violet dropped off her stool immediately, mumbling a farewell to Erza before joining August and walking out of the guild hall.


	58. FIFTY EIGHT

*Violet’s POV*

The walk back to the apartment from the guild hall was better than I could have imagined. It was the first time since leaving with Natsu almost a week before, I had been allowed to go unsupervised. 

Of course I still had the lacrama bracelet to track me, and I had a sneaking suspicion that it would still prevent me from leaving Magnolia. Not that I wanted too. Now that August and I had had the chance to sit down and talk, to be honest with each other, the plan had changed. 

We had come to a Fairy Tail to destroy it. When that failed we attempted to fly under the radar long enough to escape what we took as their wrath. but now things were different. We knew what we wanted. We wanted to stay. 

Neither me nor August said much as we neared our apartment. Both us were introverts at heart, and as we walked back to our little shell of a home, it was more than enough just to know that he was at my side.

August and I had already discussed setting aside some of the money from Topaz for rent the next month, with that on top of everything that was left from Justice Valkyrie, we had enough to live on for a while, even when taking into account my plan to splurge on new clothes. 

When I had told August about my idea, at first he had been reluctant. Years of Justice Valkyrie conditioning and fear had told him that it was a bad idea, not to mention the prospect of bearing my scars out in the open. But he had agreed that it could be good for me, and encouraged me to go shopping the next day. 

But for now, we both needed sleep. It had been a long time since I’d slept through the night, and I hoped that the combination of my tiredness, and knowing that August would be in the next room over would mean the end for my nightmares, at least for now. 

August unlocked the door to the apartment and we both slipped inside. I took a deep breath, looking at the place for the first time in almost a week. It appeared that August had made some attempt to tidy up since last time I’d been there, though I knew that if asked he would deny it. I mumbled a good night to August and then receded to my bedroom, changing quickly and falling into bed just as sleep rose up to claim me. 

~~~

*August's POV*

I woke slowly, the yellow light from my cracked bedroom door inching across the carpet to my bed. Outside I could hear Violet rustling around the kitchen, moving back and forth slowly and precisely. 

I sat up in bed and rubbed my eyes. A minute later I had dressed and was heading for the bathroom across the way. When I exited the room I could just see Violet sitting down at our tiny kitchen table. 

“Morning,” I called. 

She turned slowly, already fully dressed and ready to go. 

“Were you going to go shopping today?” I asked. 

“I was hoping to.” she said, “I’ll have to stop by the guild first and make sure the master’s okay with it.” 

“It’s okay,” I said, “if you wanna head out now I can tell him when I get there.” 

“You sure it’s okay to go off on my own without permission?” she asked dubiously. 

“I don’t really care what he thinks.” I said coldly. 

If anything this only seemed to give Violet more doubts. 

“He let me go off on my own,” I said, “I’m sure it will be fine.” 

She still seemed unsure, but I knew that she would prefer to avoid the master at all costs. 

“Yeah okay.” 

“I’m gonna hop in the shower.” I said, “I’ll head over to the guild a little later, you go out, and I’ll meet you there?” 

“Sounds good to me,” Violet nodded, “see you soon.” 

I nodded, lingering for a moment later before turning towards the bathroom. As I undressed I heard the front door open and close, and knew that Violet had left. 

This would be good for her. I had to convince myself of it. Even if she wasn’t going about things in the way I expected, I knew that in her own way, Violet was making an effort to come out of her shell around the fairies. 

If we really were planning to stay with them now, then she would have to get comfortable with the idea. I wanted her to feel safe at Fairy Tail, despite it being something that even I had yet to achieve. 

I knew that they won't attack me, and that I was unlikely to attack them, but that was about as far as my trust extended. And I knew Violet’s hadn’t even made it that far yet. Not that I really blamed her for it. If it had been me in those woods...if it had been my pride that Natsu had wiped the floor with…

No. it wasn’t worth wondering about. Things were the way they were. If I wanted things to change I had to focus on the present. I had seen Violet’s interactions with the other guild members before and after our discovery. I could see the difference. She had been wary of them before but, at least she had been capable of holding some sort of conversation. Now even that seemed to nearly incapacitate her. It wasn’t fair. Her magic, her shyness, her understandable mistrust. I had seen in her the anguish of trying to interact with Fairy tail, something that she wanted, something that wanted her and yet...she was terrified of the very idea of it. 

I didn’t know how to fix it. 

You could ask someone. 

I blinked. It was the first time the thought had occurred to me. I had never had anyone who I could ask for help. Not with something like this. But who to ask now? I was closest with Gajeel, but he didn’t seem like the type that would have the solutions to something like this. I needed someone wiser, someone I could be completely open with. 

The answer was clear. The master. But to bring my issues with Violet to one of the people she feared most. Was that not some kind of betrayal of trust? But I needed to know how to help her. 

I bit my lip. What she didn’t know couldn’t hurt her. I made my decision. If the master could help me come up with a way to ease her anxiety, then it was worth it. 

I finished my shower quickly and dressed before leaving the apartment. The sooner I got to the guild hall the sooner I could ask him. The sooner I could get it off my conscience. 

When I neared the building I walked faster, determined not to lose my nerve. To ask the Master for help was a sign of weakness that I hadn’t shown before. To ask on Violet’s behalf, I felt like I was exposing both of us. But if anyone could help me understand what it took to be comfortable around Fairy Tail it would be him. I had to try. 

When I entered the guild hall, the master was sitting at the bar, just where I expected him to be, I took a deep breath, heading straight for him. He looked up when he saw me, his interest only slightly hidden behind half lidded eyes. 

“Where is Violet?” was the first thing he said. 

In all of my eagerness to ask his help I had forgotten that by letting her go off alone might have already turned him against me. Rather than answer I took it as an opportunity. 

“Actually I wanted to talk to you about her.” 

My request combined with Violet’s absence seemed to be enough to win the old man’s urgency. 

“Of course,” he said, “Come to my office.” 

I took a deep breath as I walked him behind the bar, no backing out now. 

The master settled into his chair and gestured to the one access form him. The office had changed slightly since I’d seen it last, the mattress that I had slept on only a few nights ago had been removed, the rest of the furnishings returned to their original poisons. Returned to normal. 

“What’s wrong?” he asked. 

For a moment I felt a pang of guilt for leading him to believe something was immediately wrong. I took a deep breath. “Violet wanted to go shopping.” I said, “I told her to meet me back here.” 

He took a drastic shift of tone in stride. “You let her go alone?” the master asked.

I nodded, refusing to be intimidated. 

“Do you think that was a safe idea?” 

Coming from anyone else the questions might have been patronizing, or even a threat. But not from master Makarov. he was genuinely asking for my input.

“I don’t know.” I admitted . 

The master learned forward, focusing in on me, and the conversation started in earnest. 

“I’m worried about her is all,” I said, “and…” the words fell away from me. This wasn’t how this was supposed to go. “I told her that I wanted to stay here yesterday, that I didn’t want to run. And she just rolled with it, as if it was normal.” 

“Do you think she could be lying?” the master asked casually. 

“No.” I was sure of that much at least. “No nothing like that just...she accepted it too easily. I don’t think she really understands what it means to betray Justice Valkyrie like this. I don’t think she’s even thought about it.” 

“But she wanted to stay here at Fairy Tail.” 

“That’s what she told me.” I said, “but if...when the fighting starts...what if she…” even though it had been my greatest fear, I can't bring myself to voice it. 

“What if she turns on us.” the master said, “you think there’s a chance she would return to them.” 

My mouth was dry. I nodded, suddenly speaking the things that I had been too afraid to even think about. “I don’t know what to do.'' It was the first time in my life that those words had ever left my mouth, and I could tell that the master didn’t take them lightly. 

“Well, I wasn’t going to inform you of it,” the master said, “but that has also been on my mind.” 

I stared at him, unable to form my own words and comprehend his at the same time. 

He continued despite my lack of response. “I believe the best solution is to help Violet strengthen her relationships with the other members of the guild. The more people she builds friendships with, the stronger ties she will have to Fairy Tail.” 

“That’s why you sent Natsu with her on the job,” I said, realizing it for the first time, “you want them to make up.” 

“That’s the plan.” the master sighed, “thought I understand that it is easier said than done.” 

“No I-I’m glad you’re helping.” 

The fact that the master had noticed Violet's reluctance meant that I wasn’t just making things up. And the fact that he had already made moves to strengthen Violet’s commitment to the guild meant that I wasn’t alone in trying to get her to replant herself in Fairy tail. 

It was real. I was about to tell him as much when there was a light knock on the door. 

“Come in,” the master called. 

The door opened slowly to reveal Mira Jane. 

“What is it?” the masker asked. 

“There’s a letter for August.” she said simply, stepping inside and setting an envelope on the desk before turning to leave. The master called out a “thank you.” as she left, but my attention was on the envelope. Inside I could see the outline of a communication lacrima. The thought of seeing Takashi again made my stomach turn. 

The master picked up the envelope carefully, as though he was handling something explosive. “There’s a note.” he said calmly. 

He handed it to me and I read aloud. “We need to talk. Make sure Vi is there to. Takashi.” 

My stomach twisted again. “Do you think he knows?” 

“It’s possible.” the master said. 

“What do we do?” 

“We tell him the truth.” 

I stared. 

“Well, some of it anyway.”


	59. FIFTY NINE

*Violet’s POV*

I had never been shopping before, but now I started to understand why so many people liked it. There were so many options. I had never really thought much about what I’d worn before, but now I couldn't stop. 

I wasn’t exactly sure what was fashionable, but I did my best, looking at how the clothes were arranged on the manikins and other models in the store. I tried to put myself in the mindset of Lucy, whose appearance I had always envied, though I knew our figures were vastly different. After a few hours I felt that I’d done a good job picking out everything. 

I walked back towards the apartment with several bags draped over my shoulders. It had been a long time since I’d been allowed to be alone, and I was enjoying it. When carrying the bags of clothes back to the apartment I could seem like a normal person. Not an assassin. Not even a wizard. Just...Violet. 

But the fantasy was easily broken every time I walked close enough to a stranger to get a dose of their emotions. I had to keep my head. Playing pretend was fine, but my own life was still moving along around me. I would have to return to the guild hall soon or risk getting in even more trouble, as August hadn’t exactly asked for permission before letting me go off on my own. I knew it would be in poor taste to be gone for longer than I had to. 

I arrived at the apartment and let myself in, dumping my bag onto the floor of my bedroom. I reached in and pulled out a new outfit, a short sundress with an open back. I had already seen in the mirror in the changing room that my scars were clearly visible, but I had been telling myself the whole way home that I didn’t care. 

I pulled on some new gladiator sandals that I had seen on sale. They made me feel like a warrior despite the impracticality of the dress. I was going to be doing a different kind of fighting now, and I needed to be confident in myself to do it. 

I wanted to find my place at Fairy Tail. I knew that much. But I also knew that it would be easier said than done. Especially with my magic getting in the way of things. 

But I had to try. 

I took one last look in the mirror before turning back to the door and making my way to the guild hall. As soon as I stopped outside the apartment I noticed the way the warm Magnolia breeze hit my shoulders. It wasn’t often that I’d worn something that left them uncovered, but I found that I enjoyed it. 

As I walked I noticed other beautiful women and men, and rather than feeling like an outsider I felt as though I was part of Magnolia's natural abundance, contributing to one of the things that had drawn me into the city in the first place. As I neared the guild hall I was determined to keep my confidence, but the closer I got, the more I could feel Fairy Tail’s natural aura encroaching on my mood. 

Open, loud, blatantly inviting. It was intimidating even now, perhaps even more so. But I knew what was waiting for me inside. August. If anyone could help me understand the fairies, it was him. We could do it together. I was sure of it. 

I placed my hand on the door, took a deep breath, and walked inside. The reaction wasn’t immediate. Many people hadn’t seen me enter. Many more looked up only to look away. It wasn’t until I passed by Erza’s table that something changed. I felt her shift to get my attention, and forced myself to look up. I sensed that if I didn’t move to talk to her, she would take the initiative. 

I took one last glance around the room. August was once again sitting in the middle of a large group of fairies, talking and laughing. He had yet to see me, and it would be problematic to get his attention. I took a deep breath and veered off course, moving to join Erza. 

“I see you’ve done some shopping.” she said lightly as I approached her table. 

I nodded, hovering a few feet away from her, unsure if it was supposed to get closer or leave it there. Erza herself had no preference, and thus gave me no clue on what she wanted me to do. 

“Can I-Can I sit with you?” 

The question seemed to catch Erza off guard, but she nodded. I slowly eased into the chair across from her, not sure of what to say. She sipped her tea quietly, and I knew that being in her presence didn’t necessarily require conversation. 

I glanced back to the middle of the guild hall, where August was in the middle of what I assumed was a thrilling story, surrounded by encouraging Fairies, the center of attention even now that our cover was blown. 

He made a brief eye contact with me across the hall, the first time he had seen me since entering. In him formed a question, and concern for my well being. He wanted to know if I needed him. 

I shook my head and gave a thumbs up. He nodded and returned to his conversation. I took a deep breath and sank further into my seat. I didn’t need August to do my talking for me. I could manage just fine on my own. I had to. 

I turned back to face Ezra, hoping that she would take it as an invitation to start a conversation, but when I turned I saw that she had been watching August as well. 

She seemed quietly interested in him. For a moment I wondered if she would rather be a part of his other onlookers, rather than stuck with me in the corner. 

“Looks like he figured out how to jump back into things while we were gone.” she said. 

And I knew that she had ment it as a good thing. It was a good thing. I was happy for him. So then why did I feel my heart twist every time I looked in his direction? 

“I don’t think I'll ever be like that.” 

Erza’s attention snapped back to me, her body filling with an intensity that didn’t match her tone. “What do you mean?”

I sighed. I had wanted to talk to her. I had brought this upon myself. “I’m just not the type that can be in the middle of all that.” I shrugged. “It’s so...loud.” in every sense of the word. “Maybe I’m just not the making friends type.” 

I had meant to sound casual, matter of fact, but in voicing the sentiment I realized I was afraid of it, and Erza was catching on fast. 

“Just because you’re not taking things as fast as August don't mean you’re not making friends.” 

I wanted to indicate that I was listening, but I was too busy fighting with my face. 

“Not everyone likes being the center of attention.” Erza continued, “just because you’re not over there in a large group doesn't mean you don't have any friends.” 

I glanced over at August. And again...a turning in my heart. I understood that in theory Erza was right. I knew that was how she was, a founder of steady friendships, mostly one on one. And I knew that I could have that. 

But I also wanted what August had. I wanted to be able to sit in front of everyone without feeling like my heart was caving in on itself. I wanted to stay at Fairy Tail and talk and laugh and cry, but every moment I spent with them I also wanted to run and hide and never come back. 

I would never be happy. 

Across the hall, I saw August stop talking mid sentence, and feel a sudden anxiety welling up in him. I followed his line of sight, and saw that the master had emerged from his office. 

I watched August excuse himself and walk towards the master, they talked for a few moments before both turned to look in my direction. I turned to see that Erza’s eyes were also on them. 

“I-” 

“Go.” she said, “We can talk later.” 

I nodded, slowly rising from my seat and walking to where the others were waiting. 

“Is smoothing wrong?” I asked, my silver tongue told me the answer, even as August opened his mouth for a reassuring lie. 

“Everything’s-” 

“I need to talk to you both in my office.” the master interrupted. 

Were we in trouble? Was it because I had gone off alone that morning? 

I looked at August, silently asking him to explain. “We have to make a game plan.” August said, “Then we’re going to talk to Takashi.”


	60. SIXTY

*Violet’s POV*

I could feel the smooth wood of the master’s chair underneath my thighs as I watched him close the door behind August and I. The sensation was strange as that part of my legs had never gone uncovered, but I refused to let myself be distracted by it as the master took his seat across from us. 

I had much more pressing matters to think about, like how I was going to lie to Takashi, the man who had taught me how to deceive people in the first place. The man who had offered me a place at his side, and was still waiting for my answer once I finished the mission that he thought was going swimmingly. Despite everything, I felt a little pang in my heart when I realized that we were technically enemies now. 

“As August told you before,” the master started, “Takashi first contacted him a few days ago, and he was lucky enough to come up with a quick lie.” 

“That Natsu was dead.” August confirmed. 

The words sent a silver up my spine along with the reminder of how close that was to having been a reality. “I remember.” I said simply. 

“Well thought it was a smart move in the heat of the moment,” the master said, “it may yet lead to more problems. As I’m sure you already know Natsu is not one to stay quiet. We have to come up with something else.” 

I felt August's heart sink, and then my own as if in sympathy. 

“Sorry about that.” August said, “I didn’t think things through last time he called.” 

“It was a precarious situation,” the master said, flicking away August's potentially fatal error with a wave of his hand. “And one that saved us from suspicion. But now it needs to be amended.” 

“So what’s the new plan?” I asked. 

Both looked at me, surprised for a moment before settling back into things. August knew I wasn’t one to talk much during debriefs and mission meetings back at Justice Valkyrie, but immediately reasoned that this was quite different. 

The master's reaction, though the same on the surface, was a little stranger. He was not only surprised that I would speak, but a little worried, and not just at the prospect of my question. As August, he took my comment in his stride, but the matter hadn’t resolved itself in his mind, but simply been tucked away for later use. 

“Well that was what I called you here to discuss.” he said, “you both know Takashi better than I, Violet especially.” I did my best not to shrink away when he looked my direction, “We have to come up with a reason that Natsu is alive that’s convincing.” 

August nodded, accepting the challenge that was before him. I stared at the masters desk, watching the wood grains begin to dance as my eyes watered. I didn’t like the idea of deceiving Takashi, who other than August had been my only friend, my tutor. And if things had gone the way they were supposed to...maybe he could have become something more. But to wish for Takashi now was to wish for a world where Natsu was dead. I shivered at the thought. 

But I found myself realizing for the first time that by distancing myself from Justice Valkyrie, I was always going to lose whatever relationship I had with Takashi. As well as whatever relationship we might have grown to have. Was it wrong to mourn the loss of it? When it only could have come out my much more mourning from strangers. 

No. Not strangers. Even when I had first met them Fairy Tail had not been a set of strangers to me. 

I let out a little sigh. Was there no way I could win? 

“What do you think Vi?” 

I looked up at August, rewinding the last minute or so in my head, no one had spoken I was sure of it. But of course August and I didn’t need words to communicate, he had expected me to be reading him all this time. I did a quick read now, but all I could feel now was concern that I hadn't answered quickly enough. I cursed myself for not paying attention to his process. 

“I don’t know.” I said, honestly, not wanting to make us look like idiots in front of the master.

“Do you have a plan?” the masker asked, and I sensed a slight annoyance that he was the only one out of the loop, even though it wasn’t true. 

“Kind of,” August said. “There’s nothing we can do about the fact that he thinks Natsu is dead. I did my job a little too well, and if I get caught up in that lie, it’s not going to be good.” 

“So we have to tell him that everyone thought Natsu was dead but then came back.” I said, using my reading now to make it seem like I had known all along. 

“It does look bad on you thought Vi,” August said, “for not making sure of it.” 

“I’ll come up with something.” I said. I knew exactly what I could use. Takashi knew I had been hesitant to kill Natsu, and that compounded with my injuries...it would only make sense that I would be a little incoherent at the end of the battle. My brain was already formulating a story. 

“So it’s as simple as that?” the master said, thought I sensed it was just a prompt to hear the rest of the plan. I wondered how he, with no magic to help him know there would be more, seemed to read us so easily.

“We’ll have to be careful.” August said, “Takashi contacted us, which means he has instructions for moving forward. But those instructions will be based on the idea that Natsu is dead. When we tell him that he’s alive, things might get hairy.” 

“He likes being in control of things,” I recalled, “He won't be happy when he finds out we were wrong. We have to be careful how we tell him.” Normally I would have been able to read him the whole time, make sure that we were on the right track, switch tactics if I could sense that things weren’t working. But I could do nothing of the sort this time. There was no way for my magic to stretch the distance to the current compound, even though the lacrima would be pulling us together. 

I would be in the dark on this one. 

“What do you think the plan moving forward would have been?” the master asked. I sensed he too was trying to think of the perfect way to bring Natsu up. It felt strange to feel his brain working alongside August's. Proof that we really were on the same side now. Or at least we appeared to be. 

“Well he asked to see Vi.” August said, “he might have more for you specifically.” 

I didn’t like what his tone was implying. “Or he just needs me for debrief on what really happened with Natsu.” I said, “it’s probably just because I’m the one that did it.” 

August disagreed but didn’t pursue it. The master’s eyes flicker back and forth between us. He was hovering on the brink of understanding, but not allowing himself to make any assumptions. Did he enjoy walking a razor's edge? 

“Whatever it is he wants,” I said, “I wouldn't be able to read him, so there’s no way to know if he’s buying what we’re feeding him.” 

“If he catches us in a lie he’ll call us out on it though,” August said, “so we’ll know then.” 

“But then it will be too late.” I pointed out. If Takashi thought we were lying, then it was all over, there would be Valkyries on Fairy Tail’s door step by nightfall. 

“You’ll just have to do your best with the situation.” the master said, “Remember the only goal is to buy more time for us to figure out what to do next. Failure is not the end.” 

I felt August's heart melt a little bit, wanting to believe, and then truly believing what the master was saying. I was not so trusting. The master didn’t understand what it would be like if Justice Valkyrie managed to make it to Fairy Tail. I knew the Fairies’ track record. I didn’t doubt that if war was the only option they would come out the other side, possibly even unscathed. 

But August and I would not be so lucky. We had to convince Takashi that we were still on his side. 

August took a deep breath, then looked to me, a question of will. I nodded. “We’re ready,” he said. 

The master nodded and brought forth the envelope containing the lacrima out of a drawer and set it on the desk in front of us. “If he asks, you’re both in your apartment,” the master said, “I’ll be here, but you cannot acknowledge me. I have asked Mira not to allow anyone to disturb us. Good luck.” 

We nodded, and August reached forward to open the envelope and start the call. There was no going back now. I took several deep breaths and reminded myself of how I was meant to act. I liked Takashi. He was my friend. My future partner. He trusted me. And I him. And now all I had to do was lie. 

But as August stopped back from the now exposed communication device, I sensed something that I hadn’t been expecting, a presence on the other side of the guild master’s door. If they attempted to enter the results would be disastrous, but I soon realized that they weren't planning on making themselves known. But even so, as I saw the lacrama start to dial back to its only connection, I knew that right outside the door was a fairy spy.


	61. SIXTY ONE

*Violet’s POV*

A silver ran up my spine as I realized that the presence on the other side of the door wasn't going away anytime soon. But there was nothing I could do about it as the communication lacrima on the master’s desk lit up, revealing the inside of what I recognized to be Takashi's office. I couldn't allow myself to be distracted now. I had to put on my game face and lie like my life depended on it. Because it did. 

“August,” Takashi appeared on the other end of the lacrama. “I was wondering when you would call.” His smile was breathtaking. 

“Good to see you too.” August said dryly. 

I did my best to configure my face to fit what it usually was around Takashi. It wasn’t too hard really, to get back into that mindset. His silver hair... Glittering eyes that hinted of mischief. He was still beautiful to me. 

“Why the long face Augest?” Takashi asked, “You should be in high spirits. especially you Violet, I do wish you congratulations on your one hundredth kill. August has told me that the Salamander made it a good one.” 

I tried to ignore the way the master recoiled when she learned that Natsu would have been my hundredth. 

“Unfortunately I cannot accept your praise.” I said, appearing as disappointed as I could manage. A part of me was glad that I couldn't read Takashi now. I couldn't be distracted. And of course with the lacrama being the only thing connecting us there was no way for him to reach out and read me. 

“Why not?” Takashi’s eyes flashed dangerously, looking from August to me. It had been a good call for me to be the one to tell Takashi. He trusted me more, as I was usually unable to lie in his presence. And August could always play it like reporting something false on their last meeting was a source of hurt pride now that the “truth” had been uncovered. 

I looked at the ground, shaking my head slowly, tapping into my fear of discovery to sell the lie. 

August looked at me briefly, and my slivertongue told me he was feeling real concern before continuing with the bad news in my stead. 

“The Salamander isn’t dead.” he said grimly. 

Straight to the point. Despite the severity of the declaration, I knew Takashi would appreciate the lack of preamble. 

“He’s what?” 

“It’s was my fault.” I squeaked out, “I can’t believe I was so stupid...It was just...a long battle, and I was tired and the plan...it was getting late…” I stopped talking and shook my head. Playing it up was starting to extend past the acting. Assuming I had been capable of killing Natsu, what I was saying now would very well have been the truth. I had to keep my emotions in check. I already had enough to deal with without pulling imaginary ones into the mix.

“I’m so sorry.” I sobbed. And the tears that felt real, thought in my mind it wasn’t Takashi who I was confessing to, but the master who was sitting just behind the projection. My eyes grazed past his grim expression on their way to the floor.

But he wasn’t the only one who had a reaction to my outburst. Outside the door, whoever was spying on us also recoiled. I forced my attention back to Takashi and August. Now wasn’t the time to be worrying about some tactless fairy. I only had one chance to convince Takashi that we had yet to turn traitor. 

“He must have only been inquired after the battle.” August said. “He showed up at the guild hall only hours after you last contacted me.” 

“And you didn’t think it would be important to tell me that sooner?” Takashi said. I flinched at his tone, but it also gave me hope, if he was angry that we hadn’t told him...did that mean he believed us? I did a quick read of August, he seemed to think so, though the master was still on high alert, as well as whoever was listening at the door. 

“We were lucky that you thought to give Vi that mask.” August said, “Natsu has no idea it was here, but the Fairies are searching everywhere for the man in the mask.” 

“So it wasn’t safe to try anything suspicious.” Takashi sighed. 

August nodded. “We haven’t failed yet though. our cover hasn’t been blown, and if anything this has helped us gain more trust. In their fear the fairies are turning to each other, getting closer to anyone who bears their mark. That trust will be their downfall soon enough.” 

“Indeed.” Takashi said. “Very well.” 

I looked up at him, he was nodding slowly, as if deciding something. “It’s possible the order to hurry things along was a rash one, but it appears to have worked in your favor regardless.” 

So he really did believe us. I did another scan. August was trying to keep himself from smiling. The master had finally relaxed. 

“Keep to your original plan,” Takashi said, “You are doing well.” 

I puffed my chest out with what I hoped seemed like pride. 

“This does put a bit of a damper on what I originally wanted to talk about,” Takashi said thoughtfully, “but I believe some of it still applies.” 

“What is it?” August asked. 

Takashi stared at him for a long time before turning his gaze to me. I forced myself not to look away. Takashi and I were friends. We trusted another. 

“Actually I wanted to talk to Violet alone if that was okay.” 

My heart sank. Under normal circumstances I would have jumped at the opportunity for his attention. And even now, I was unafraid of spewing our lies alone. But I wouldn’t really be alone. Whatever Takashi was going to say to me, he was going to say in front of the master, and August to. 

August was surprised to say the least, but it faded when he realized the same thing I did, he wasn’t going to leave the room, but simply wait in the corner as the master was currently doing. Even the presence on the other side of the door was holding their breath. 

I swallowed, knowing that the silence had gone on too long already.. “I would love to.” I said, further assurance to August that I would be okay. 

“I guess I’ll head to my room.” August said, moving past me and pressing himself against the wall. “Call me if you need anything.” and he inched around to the other side of the room, standing behind the master and watching me. I took a deep breath. 

Immediately, Takashi’s demeanor changed, he seemed to become less stiff, more comfortable now that it was just me. My fears started to confirm themselves. This little talk wasn’t going to be a professional one. 

I forced my body to mirror Takashi’s, relaxing in the presence of a perceived friend. 

“What’s up?” I asked, thought my voice quivered a bit against my will. 

“Violet…” the name that had once seemed smooth and beautiful on his tongue sent silver down my back. 

I swallowed hard, trying my best not to make eye contact with August or the master on the other side of the room. This was not going to be pleasant.


	62. SIXTY TWO

*August's POV*

I watched Violet through the projection of Takashi. It had been a bit surprising at first when I realized that his goal in this was to speak to her alone, but when I really thought about it and made sense. He had done the same on several other occasions before, and it had been her in the woods trying to kill Natsu. It only made sense to think that he would want to talk to her. 

So then why did I have the sneaking suspicion that something was wrong? 

The master sat stock still to my right, his eyes fixed on Vi. I knew the eye contact was probably making her uncomfortable, but I couldn't look away. As soon as I had appeared to leave the room Takashi had completely changed, as though the spring of his spine had finally been giving some slack, he folded in on himself causally. He was more relaxed, but no less frightening. And even so, I was sure that in all my seventeen years, I had never seen him look like that. But Violet didn’t even bat an eye. 

“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to see you when I last contacted August.” he said. 

“It’s okay,” Violet said smoothly, “I’m glad I can see you.” she looked down at the floor briefly, was that...a blush? 

“I’m sorry for sending your current partner away so suddenly.” Takashi said, “if he asks you can tell him you gave me a debrief.” 

Violet nodded naturally. Had she always been this familiar with him? “What did you really want to talk about?” she asked. 

“I wanted to let you know that I don't’ consider this a failure.” Takashi said, “when I told August that I wanted to see some progress I never expected...well I guess you could consider it my fault for allowing him to misinterpret my request.” 

I blinked. His request had been pretty clear. He wanted dead fairies or else. And I had delivered, at least as far as he knew. 

“What do you mean?” Violet asked. 

“Well when I told him to kill a fairy, I expected him to do it.” 

“I-oh…” 

I swallowed hard. What the hell did that mean? Violet and I were a team, the will of one was the will of the other, the pride of one, the pride of the other...and Takashi had been the one to suggest that Violet kill Natsu in the first place. 

“What I’m trying to say,” Takashi said, “is that you did nothing wrong here so…” he looked down, almost bashfully, I shook my head to make sure I wasn’t seeing things. “So I wanted to let you know that my offer still stands.” 

I watched Violet tense up. The master leaned forward with interest. I blinked dumbly. Violet had never mentioned any kind of offer from Takashi. 

“Oh,” Violet said, “I-that’s great.” 

“Have you had the chance to consider it?” Takashi asked. 

Violet opened her mouth, when she closed it again, shaking her head. 

“Well I guess that’s only fair.” Takashi said, “You’ve had quite the eventful week. 

Violet let out a little nervous laugh. “You don’t even know half of it.” 

“Just...think about it.” Takashi said, “We worked perfectly together on that last job. If we became partners, we would be unstoppable.” 

My mouth went dry. 

Violet wanted to split up? She wanted to leave me for him? Violet’s eyes flashed up to me, for just a fraction of a second, and I looked away. She knew what I was feeling. She knew that this was doing to me. 

“I just need some more time,” Violet said, “things are...complicated.” 

“I understand.” Takashi said, “if it weren't for the most recent development I would try to visit you again, though with all of the fairies on high alert it may not be the best course of action for a while.” 

“Right,” Violet said, “but I’ll look forward to when we can meet again.” 

Takashi’s eyes sparkled. “As do I.” 

~~~

*Violet’s POV*

“is there anything else you need to tell me Vi?” 

I forced my eyes to stay on Takashi, and not on August who was waiting just beyond the projection. 

“Nothing I can think of.” I said, trying not to let my guard down even as the conversation came to a close. “Do you want me to call August back in?” 

“No, that’s unnecessary.” Takashi said bitterly. I felt August flinch, this last of hand comment only adding to his boiling anger. “Bid him farewell for me.” 

“I will.” 

“Until we meet again Violet.” 

“Until then.” 

And the transmission ended. 

The master and August stood stock still on the other side of the room, both staring at me, the presence on the other side of the door shifted, then faded, probably feeling down the hallway in preparation for us to come out of the office. But the look on August's face told me that there would still be some time before I returned to the main guild hall. 

“What the hell was that?!” he asked. 

“August,” the master said warningly 

“It was nothing.” I said, “We were just talking” 

We all knew it was a lie. 

“How long has it been since he offered for you to become his partner?” 

“Just a couple weeks,” I said, “he told me when he came to visit, that’s why we went on that job together, to see if we would be a good match.” 

“And you didn’t tell me?” August’s voice had become frantic, the way it only did when something was horribly wrong. It scared me, even though I knew I was the source of his anger. Especially because I knew.

“There was a lot going on,” I said, though I knew that there was nothing I could say that would make him calm down. I felt tears stinging the backs of my eyes and bid them not to fall. Not again. Not in front of the master. “Do we have to do this now?” I asked. 

“No,” August said cloudy, “We could have done it when he gave you the option to leave me. You could have told me how much you hated working with me then.” 

“I don’t-” 

“I don’t wanna hear it.” 

“August,” I reached forward, offering my hand, offering proof that I was telling the truth.

“I’ll meet you back at the apartment.” he said, and pulled the door open before stepping out without a word to the master. 

I stood there as the door slammed shut behind him, staring at the last place I had seen him before disappearing. What had I done? 

Slowly, the master made his way to my side. I didn't acknowledge him, so he took the initiative to speak first. 

“He just needs time.” the master said, and I turned to him slowly. He had never been a source of comfort for me considering the circumstances, though I knew that most of the guild considered him wise. The perfect guardian for a guild of loose cannons. 

“I’ve never seen him like that.” I whispered. “I mean I have but...never at me.” and therein lies the problem. I had often considered August's anger righteous, if it had been turned on me…

“It’s been a stressful few days for him as well.” the master said, “You have both been working hard to establish new friendships within the guild, but you shouldn't neglect the one you already have.” 

I nodded slowly. It was no wonder some of the fairies called their master Gramps. I had been unsure before, when Takashi offered me a place at his side. But I knew the answer now. I knew what I had to do. 


	63. SIXTY THREE

*August's POV*

Gajeel called to me as I stormed out of the guild hall, but I took no notice. Even Natsu and the others looked up as I made my way to the door. I didn’t care. 

I was so angry. And not just at Violet and Takashi, but the whole situation. That she would choose him over me, even now, after everything that we had been through together. 

I guessed it only made sense, after all...the way they had been talking...it would be so simple for her to claim it was all my fault, that I alone had turned traitor. Then I would be alongside the rest of the Fairy Tail, and Violet would gain infamy from Takashi's side, and continue the mandate of Justice Valkyrie. 

The thought of it made me sick. 

But if that's what she wanted...what she really wanted...shouldn't I do everything in my power to give it to her? I reached the door to the guild hall and burst outward. How could I know the difference between what she wanted and what Takashi convinced her she wanted? 

I was no empath, but I wasn’t blind either. It was clear to everyone who saw them that Violet had a crush on Takashi. If Takashi knew about that he was going to use it against her. That’s probably why he thought it would be a good idea to make her his partner. Time alone, unchecked by me or anyone else who cared about Violet's well being. I shivered. 

I didn’t care what she wanted on that font, a ten year age gap wasn’t good in any circumstances. 

I took a deep breath. There was no way that could happen now. Violet had told me she wanted to try and make things work with Fairy Tail. and that’s what we were going to do. Putting Takashi into the equation just made things a little more complicated. 

I slowed my frantic pace, looking around for the first time to see where I had run off to. South Gate Park, the opposite direction from our apartment. I doubted anyone would come looking for me here. I knew it was unfair to keep Violet waiting, thinking I was angry at her. But I needed time. I needed space. 

Though when I considered it seriously I knew I was angry at her. I didn’t understand why she hadn’t told me about Takashi’s offer the moment he had made it. Why I hadn’t somehow noticed the change to dynamic between the two of them. 

I took a deep breath and started at the place where the dirt met the sidewalk. This was going to be a lot more complicated than I’d hoped.

*Violet’s POV*

I knew August better than anyone. I knew that the longer I left him to stew in his emotions the worse it would be when I got there. I had to interrupt the chain of overthinking before it made things any worse than they already were. Even if the thought of our inevitable conversation left my mouth tasting of metal. 

I left the master’s office somewhat confidently, but after scanning through the various faces of the Fairy Tail guild hall I realized that August wasn’t among them. My first instinct was to head back to our apartment and look for him there, but I knew I won't find him. If he was angry at me, he wouldn’t make it so easy. He was probably dreading our next conversation as much as I was. But it had to be made sooner rather than later. It had to. 

I lingered there in the middle of the guild hall alone, unsure of what to do. August was bound to return to the apartment at some point right? Maybe I should wait for him there. Or would it be better to stay at the guild hall, the place where he had seen me last. 

As I was trying to work out the best course of action I noticed a presence approaching me and turned slowly, preparing a lie for whatever Fairy had decided to help me this time. 

But to my surprise it was Gajeel. 

“Hey there,” he said, looking me in the eyes, seeking what the others avoided. 

Despite never really talking to him myself, I knew his type from the studying I’m done. “What do you want?” I asked bluntly. 

“Oh, a prickly one, just like your brother.” 

I stared at him. I didn’t have time for fairy antics right now. 

“You’re looking for him now right?” he asked, “I saw him run out of here a few minutes ago. He looked pretty pissed if you ask me. What was that old man talking to you about anyway?” 

“Do you know which way he went?” I asked, only realizing that I had ignored his question when I felt his reaction. Not that I would have given him an answer for it anyway. 

I noticed Gajeel make a split second decision, and then he said, “No, I just watched him leave.'' Apparently he had elected to go with the flow of my interrogation rather than trying to take control. It was a strange kind of power now that I realized I had it. The ability to control what we talked about. Usually it wasn’t something I wanted, though I sincerely thanked Gajeel for bending to my wishes this time. I tucked the information away for later. 

If he didn’t know where August was he was no help to me. 

“Well thanks for letting me know,” I said, already turning away, “but I have to-” 

“Do you want help finding him?” 

I looked back, then remembered, as a dragon slayer Gajeel could find him by smell, the way Natsu had done back before everything hit the fan. But was it fair to ask him? Then again, he had been the one to seek me out. I wasn’t to blame if he was offering right? 

Somehow I still felt dirty about it. 

“Hey!” 

I turned back to face a disgruntled Gajeel. 

“Are you gonna stand there all day or are we gonna find him?” 

I took a deep breath, knowing that my next words would sentence me to a long walk with a fairy stranger. “Let’s find him.”


	64. SIXTY FOUR

*Violet's POV*

Unlike Natsu, Gajeel didn’t rush ahead of me as he led the way through the streets of Magnolia. Despite the large difference in our heights, he managed to naturally match my stride. Perhaps he had experience walking with people shorter than him. I considered asking him, just as a means for conversation, but then thought better of it. Gajeel had been August’s priority, not mine. If everything had gone according to plan, then it was more than likely that the man beside me would have fallen by my brother’s hand. 

I wondered sometimes if the universe was playing some kind of cruel joke on us. It had never crossed my mind before, but the nature of undercover missions were somehow inherently tragic. The people that we were required to grow closed to where the very people who we would have to kill. 

Or the people we would have killed anyway. 

As we walked, I found my eyes occasionally sliding over to Gajeel. There weren't many facets of life that August and I didn’t share. And the few we did have were generally unpleasant. Save special circumstances, all training exercises and examinations were conducted individually. As where the punishments received when the expectations were not met. 

Other than that August and I had shared almost every part of our lives. Ever since he brought me to the guild all those years ago. It made Takashi somehow special, like he belonged to me and only me. I wanted a stronger claim to him. 

“You don’t talk much, do you?” 

I hadn’t expected Gajeel to speak to me, there had been no warning in his mind about it. Perhaps I shouldn’t have been surprised. He seemed like the type to indulge in spur of the moment actions. 

“Do you want me to?”

He was surprised, but it quickly morphed into amusement, a natural transition. I wondered if he equated the two often. 

“August talks a lot,” he said instead. “Once you get him going.” 

A topic we both knew about. It was a rudimentary rule of conversation, to stay on even playing ground. And yet… the one thing we had in common was the one thing I didn’t want to think about. The one thing I had to do if I was going to find a way to calm August down when I saw him next. 

“Are you implying that I’d do the same?” 

“Maybe.” but my silver tongue told me the answer was yes. 

“You know him pretty well don’t you?” 

Gajeel looked over at me for the first time. I realized my mistake. Obviously I knew August better than anyone, but aside from me, Gajeel was probably the closest to him...unless you counted the master maybe. 

“I guess.” was all he said. 

I tried to formulate something else to say, try to get the conversion moving again before it stopped completely, but I was interrupted when Gajeel stopped walking. 

“There he is.” 

We had made our way to South Gate Park, the same place in which Grey had confronted me a few days earlier. I could still see the stick I’d used in the grass near the tree. I shook my head slowly. I had other things to focus on now. Like August. 

I could only just make him out, slouching on one of the benches bordering the green space with his back turned to us. I knew it was unlikely he knew of our presence yet, and didn’t want to give him any surprises. 

I almost stepped forward before stopping myself, and turning to Gajeel. 

“Thank you for helping me find him.” I gave a clumsy bow. 

“Uh, yeah no biggie.” Gajeel said, and then, reading the mood, “I should be heading back now, lot’s to do ya know.” 

I nodded slowly, accepting his escape plan. “We’ll see you tomorrow.” 

“Yeah...later.” 

He wandered off awkwardly, and I turned to face August alone. 

I took a few steps toward him, intending to jump over the hedge rather than walk all the way around to find the entrance. I was just about to announce my presence when August spoke first. 

“I know you’re there.” 

I paused, then stopped forward, feeling the prickly branches of the bush rubbing against my thighs. 

“How did you find me?” he asked. 

“Gajeel,” I said, “he offered to help, you just missed him.” 

“It’s probably for the best.” 

I felt in him a sudden wall, the same kind of barrier that I had felt in Erza before. A blocking. I took a deep breath and jumped over the hedge, landing smoothly a few feet away from August, waiting for him to speak again. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

I felt the wall in him shutter, shaking under the weight of what was pushing behind it. 

“I knew you would get angry.” I said honestly. “We were in the middle of a job. We had to focus.” I hadn’t wanted to face the prospect any more than he did now. I had buried it deep down as well. 

“And you didn’t think to bring it up after I told you what they’d do if we failed?” 

“I was confused,” I said, “and I didn’t have that much time to figure it out before I had to...well you know.” 

“I just…” August shook his head, then as thought with great effort, looked at me for the first time. “Where are you going to say yes?” 

“I hadn’t decided.” I said, “but I know I can’t now. I won't now. I won't betray you like that.” 

I sat carefully on the bench next to him, and I felt the wall starting to break, hints of fear and abandonment peeking through the cracks like sunlight through a moth eaten curtain. 

I took his hand in mine, leveling the playing field allowing him to understand me as I understood him. We both took a deep breath and...the wall shattered. We sat there for a while, both of us reading the other, feeling what the other was feeling. 

“It’s like you always say.” I said, “we’re in this together. Takashi and I might have worked well together once, but he’s not here. He’s not you. He doesn't matter anymore.” 

August seemed to be convincing himself of it, forcing himself to trust me. I gave him time, looking out across the park, watching the way the setting sun turned the tree bark gold. 

“Okay.” he said finally. 

“Okay?” 

“Okay.” he stood, gently dropping my hand in the process. “We have enough crap going on without fighting with each other.” he said. “And I hate trying to hate you so… I’m going to let it go.” 

“Thank you.” I said, “I didn’t mean to-” 

“I know.” he took a deep breath, turning away from me. “I know.” 

I let out a sigh, realizing with it all the fear I’d held that he would hate me, and even the fear that his words were just that now, and not a reflection of what he thought. 

For now, we were together. We were friends, and all we had to do was stay together.


	65. SIXTY FIVE

*August's POV*

When I woke the next morning, Violet was already up. There was no way to tell how long she had been up, or even if she had gone to sleep at all, but I figured it might be better not to ask her. As soon as I stumbled out of my room, she greeted me, already sporting one of her many new outfits, a pair of yoga pants and a baby blue top that she told me had something called cold shoulder sleeves. 

I went about my usual morning routine while she waited on the couch. I did my best to act like everything was normal, or whatever normal was at this point. 

I knew from reading her earlier that our conversation the night before had been cathartic for one of us. But it wasn’t me. And I agreed, that my reaction had been out of line, that to expect her to tell me everything about her life was unrealistic. Especially now as we were starting to transition to our new lives outside of the checks and balances of Justice Valkyrie. 

And despite everything, I wouldn't take my reaction back. After all, one thing had led to another that allowed Violet to let me read her voluntarily, thought then again...if it hadn’t been for what I’d seen there, I wound’t be so concerned. 

It had been Takashi who reached out to her to become partners upon our return home. He, who had given Natsu’s death sentence, and even now was our biggest chance of getting caught. She related to him on a level that I hadn’t understood before. 

She still believed he had good intentions. 

And for anyone else I would have let it slide. Under any other circumstances, It would have been okay. But Takashi was our enemy, and for Violet to think otherwise was terrifying to me. 

The only thing that had confronted me enough to finally allow for sleep had been the idea that I had someone to go to. As much as I had hated it before, the prospect of going to the master for aid was looking better and better by the day. He was the only one who seemed to see the simulation clearly, and thus the only one who would have a good answer. 

I planned to talk to him as soon as I could. 

“Are you all ready to go?” I asked, stepping out of the bathroom. I already knew the answer, but Violet nodded anyway, standing and heading for the door. 

Once we made it outside and started toward the guild hall, Violet piped up. “I think we bought some time yesterday right?” 

“What?” 

“With Takashi I mean.” she said, looking away when she said his name. “I think we bought some time.” 

“Oh,” I nodded, trying to get myself to focus on something other than my upcoming conversation with Makarov. “Yeah I think so.” 

“So...do you think...maybe we could look for another job?” 

The question surprised me, though I guessed it made sense. Once Justice Valkyrie found out we turned traitor, we were going to have more than one problem, and money was one of them. If we were cut off...it wouldn't be pretty, and I wasn’t about to go crying to Fairy Tail for help. 

“That’s a good idea.” I said, “We could use some money.” 

“We could look at the board when we got there.” she said, then, as an afterthought, “thought I don’t think they’ let us leave town alone.” 

I thought of the manor in which the master had removed my tracking bracelet. “They might.” I said, though he did seem more weary of Vi than of me, and if I told him about her feelings for Takashi… “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” 

“Right.” she said, “but at least there’s a plan. I like plans.” 

Despite never voicing the sentiment before, I knew exactly what she meant. It felt good to have a drive again, even if it was just for something small, talk to the master, go on a job. The little mini missions made me feel more at ease. 

“You can look at the board while I go have a chat with the master,” I said, “I’ll find out what rules are, then we can go from there.”

Violet looked at me for a second, most likely reading my intentions. I forced myself to keep a straight face, as though doing so I could hide what I was feeling inside. If she saw anything abnormal she didn’t show it.

“That sounds good to me.”

Despite my earlier conviction that the master was the only one that could help me, I was starting to get nervous about the prospect of going to him with my new found problem. It was already clear to me what little trust he held for Violet. could further explaining my concern lead to more trouble for us both down the line? I knew in theory that the old man held no malcontent. But a lifetime of being a liar and a cheater have not done well for my trust in others. I also knew I had nowhere else to turn. I had already confided in him the day before, it only made sense that a follow up would be in order.

As Violet placed her hand on the door to the guild hall I felt my anxiety spike. She pushed it open without hesitation, I took a deep breath. And then we were both enveloped in the sounds and smells of Fairy Tail. 

But one thing blocked my view, a man with pink hair and an unreadable expression rose from a nearby table and approached us. I felt Violet tense beside me, my hands curled into fists of their own accord. 

How dare he come near her. 

Surely he knew how stressed out she already was, how much worse things would be for her when he was around. 

“I wanted to talk with you.” he said. His tone made it sound like we were all the best of friends. I took a step forward, ready to shoo him off using whatever means necessary. 

Violet took a step forward as well, raising her hand. For a moment, I wondered if she was going to strike him, but then her palm came down on my chest, coaxing me back. 

I stared at her. Natsu’s eyes were darting between the two of us. 

“It’s okay.” she said, not looking at me. “Go do what we talked about, I’ll come find you later.” 

Come find me later? Did that mean that she intended to talk to Natsu for longer than it would take for me to talk to the master? Or was it just a way of getting rid of me in the moment? 

She dropped her hand, still looking at the floor. “I’ll be fine.” her hand bruised mine, giving me a chance to read her. Hardly concealed fear, but also… determination, a desire for peace. And after all, the master had said that mending her friendship with Natsu was a sure fire way to distance her from Justice Valkyrie. To distance her form Takashi. 

It had to be done. 

“Alright then.” I said, taking a step back, a symbolic surrender for a symbolic battle. “See you later.” 

I gave Natsu one more glare before heading farther into the guild. The message was clear, if he tried anything...I would kill him.


	66. SIXTY SIX

*August's POV*

This time, the master didn’t even question it when I appeared before him at the bar. We had scarcely made it though greeting each other when he invited me into his office, as if he could smell the need for guidance on my clothes. 

I tried to force my anxiety always as I failed him back to the office for what felt like the millionth time. I wondered if it was strange to get sent in with him so often. Though I supposed that nothing about Vi and I’s membership was normal. 

“This is about Takashi, is it not?” 

I blinked. By now I thought I would be prepared for his overly casual nature. “Uh...yeah.” 

“Did you tell Violet that you would be coming to me?” 

“Well...kind off.” 

He gestured for me to continue. 

“We wanted to go on a job, so I told her I would be asking for a persimmon for that.” I said. 

He raised an eyebrow. “A job?” he asked, “as I understand it, Topaz gave you a fair amount of money already.” 

“Yeah,” I said, “but…” I hated to admit how close I thought we were to being discovered by Justice Valkyrie. “We can’t really know when we’re going to be cut off from our old guild.” I amended. “We just want to be prepared.” 

“An admirable goal.” he said, “but I'm afraid that at this moment I cannot allow you to go alone.” 

My heart fell, and based on the master's reaction I was certain that despite my efforts my face must have reflected it. 

“It’s not that I don’t trust you,” the master assured me, “it’s simply the circumstances, I wouldn't want you to get caught by your guild without help. Or the magic council for that matter. As I understand it, Violet still bears her old guild mark.” 

I swallowed hard. He didn’t trust us. Didn’t think we could stand our own. But then again...if Violet and I met Takashi when we were alone… I was confident in our abilities, but I wasn’t a fool. We wouldn't stand a chance. Especially with Violet's true feelings toward him still up in the air. 

“I understand.” 

“As for Takashi…” the master let out a long sigh, one of the only things he had done since I’d known him that reminded me of his true age. “I understand that the situation is precarious, though I’m sure your lack of information might be the root of your anxiety, but it’s likely Violet's feelings are not strong enough for there to be an issue.” 

“And if they are?” 

“I have some ideas.” 

*Violet's POV*

I tore my eyes away from the floor only long enough to find my way back out of the guild hall. While my back was turned I tried to get control of myself. As if Natsu not being able to see my face would act as some kind of shield between us. 

As soon as he had approached us I’d felt it, pulsing out of every crevice of his being, as if he were forcing on me. Compassion. This newly named emotion was now his weapon against me. Against my carefully erected defenses. And it was working. 

I had been surrounded by his presence. Smothered by it, melting and mixing with it until I didn’t know where my anxieties ended and his determination to sooth them began. 

I heard the guild hall door close behind me, a flash of pink in peripheral vision. 

“What did you want to talk to me about?” 

He hadn’t been expecting me to be the first to speak, but he wasn’t surprised either. He relaxed next to me, lending against the uneven bricks of the guild hall behind us. I stood as though at attention, ready to bolt at any moment despite knowing that running would be futile. 

Despite his relaxed nature, he was hesitating, something was holding him back. 

“I-I may have been eavesdropping on you and August yesterday.” 

I sucked in breath. So it had been his presence that I had felt through the door. Of all the people I thought it would be...my mind struggled to come up with a response and understand the consequence of his confession at the same time. “Oh,” was all I could manage to get out. 

“I didn’t mean to,” he said. In anyone else I might have thought those words to be some kind of back petal, a way of justifying wrong doing. But not for Natsu. For him it was just clarification. A matter of honor. “I was just...passing by, and heard voices.” 

There was a lie in there somewhere, but not in the part that I had thought there would be. He had not been passing by, there had been a greater purpose. And one he had been planning to tell me until the last moment. Had he been hoping to see the master? Why? 

It’s none of my business. 

“How much did you hear?” I asked, despite already knowing the answer.

He reached over to scratch the back of his neck, putting his elbow uncomfortably close to my face. Did he intend this? Before I had time to check he spoke again. 

“Most of it.” he said, “that...tokesha….” 

“Takashi.” I corrected dryly. 

“Right, him.” Natsu said. He felt no shame. “Seems like a piece of work.” 

A flash of anger came into my heart that was uncharacteristic of me. I had to remind myself that Natsu didn’t know Takashi. Only a few moments before he hadn’t even known his name. 

“He’s a little uptight.” I said. 

I saw Natsu look at me out of the corner of my eye. It seemed he had realized that bad mouthing my only friend wasn’t a good idea. Had that been his plan? He seemed to switch tactics quickly, stepping away from Takashi as though the topic were fire. Well...maybe not fire…

“The master told me that I don’t have to worry about being seen now.” he said. “Because of...what you said.” 

“Well we couldn't very well hide you forever.” 

“Still I...thank you.” 

A silver ran down my spine. Someone from fairy tail was thanking me? Not only thanking me, but really meaning it. And not just a random fairy either. This was Natsu Dragneel. 

I couldn't accept this apology. Surely he would know that. And yet he was asking me, who already owed him my life, to accept more grace. Grace I didn't deserve. “It was my fault you had to hide anyway.” 

Anger. And then, strangely, compassion. I wasn’t aware that the two of them could mix. But the feeling...it was so strong. Was this what they called righteous anger? 

If anyone could be described as having such it would be Natsu. 

But why? Why now? Was it for me? For what I had said?

“It’s not your fault.” he said, his words slipped off his tongue like rolling sweet cherries, splattering to the ground at my feet. How could he say such lies so lightly? So beautifully? “You just-”

“I just what?” 

He looked at me sharply then, but the words kept pouring out. “I don’t know what you want me to say.” I said, turning to face him for the first time since the woods. It was as though all the fear and shame that I had harbored in my heart the last couple of days had boiled down. Steaming and simmering away until all what was left was a heated rage. 

“I came here to hurt you. To kill you. And you are still flowing me around like a stupid little puppy dog.” 

He took a step back, his emotions unreadable behind my wall of anger. 

“You’re the one who was the victim here. I. attacked. you. What you did was just self defense, in the end you weren't even fighting back!” my voice was turning shrill, hysterical. And still he stood there and took it. He said nothing. And words kept coming, tearing out of my mouth and into the air before I had a chance to get them back. “I was the aggressor.” I said, “so why am I the one afraid of you?!” 

I froze. In my rage, I had realized the one thing that I had sworn I’d never admit. Not even to myself. And now it was out there, my confession lingering in the air between me and the source of my distress. The subject of my melt down. I could feel the walls closing in around me, and I welcomed being crushed as long as I could get his eyes off me.

He smiled. 

It was my turn to take a step back. My face was damp with tears that I hadn’t realized I was shedding. “What the hell’s wrong with you?” I asked. 

His grin widened. 

“What’s there to smile about huh?” 

He had the gall to look apologetic. “I guess this means you’re talking to me again.” 

I stopped short. 

That was why he was amused? Because he had finally pressed me far enough to burst? Did he even care about what I had said? Did it even phase him at all? 

Before I could decide if I even wanted an answer, the door to the guild hall flew open to reveal Lucy and Happy. 

I turned away and wiped my face with my sleeve, shrinking back behind Natsu. 

“There you guys are!” Lucy said. Her words didn’t quite match her aura, and I realized that must have interrupted us on purpose. I silently thanked her. 

It took Natsu a moment to respond, but once he did he was back to his usual self. “What’s up?”

Lucy looked between us before answering, as thought testing the waters. “August just invited us on a job!”


	67. SIXTY SEVEN

*August's POV*

I left the master’s office feeling more confident than I probably should have. In Hindsight his suggestion that I invite Lucy, Natsu, and Happy on a job with us might not have only been for Violet’s sake, but for mine as well. But for the moment I didn’t care. If using Violet’s welling being as courage was what I needed to get my foot out the door, then I would take it. False courage was still courage. 

Lucy wasn’t hard to spot. She was sitting with Happy at a table near the bar, scolding him for speaking with his mouth full. As I approached the table I saw what there were three cups set on it. My immediate realization was that the other had been Natsu’s. He must have left right away when Violet and I entered the guild hall. Had he really been that eager to talk to her? 

I tore my eyes away from the cup to see that Happy and Lucy had stopped talking, and were both looking up at me curiously. Neither one was a target, and they were most closely associated with Natsu, who had been Violet’s territory. I had only spoken to them a few times, and even fewer since Violet came back from the woods, but I figured that my connection to Violet would work as a reason for me to approach them. 

“Um...hi.” I said. I had intended for them to be the first to speak. But I had been the one to approach them, and thus it only made sense that I gave a reason.

After a brief silence, Lucy loosened up. “What’s up?” she asked politely. 

I noticed Happy look over at her carefully, and then back to me before looking away all together. The last time, the only time we had ever really interacted had been when he’d flown back from the woods alone to tattle on Violet to the master. I couldn't imagine he thought we had a stable friendship. 

“I-well…” I forced myself to focus on the problem at hand. Ignore Happy. Ignore everything that wasn’t essential. “Vi and I wanted to go on a job.” I said, “but the master says we can’t go alone so…” 

Lucy’s social instinct took control, giving me a little time to relax. “Yeah of course!” She said, “Natsu, Happy, and I was planning to look for one latter today anyway.” 

“I don’t mean to intrude.” I said, though I already knew that she had made up her mind. 

“It’s no trouble.” Lucy said, “The more the merrier right?” 

“Right…” 

As far as I was concerned she seemed a little too happy about it. But Violet had told me that Lucy had been kind to her, kinder than she really needed to be, so perhaps it was more for her sake than mine. 

“Did you have anything specific in mind?” she asked. “I haven’t gotten the chance to look at the board since we got back from Topaz’s palace but-” 

“The master said he had one set aside for us.” I said, “I don’t know what is yet.” 

“Oh.” she looked over to Happy, and they both surged, “That’s fine too then, I’m sure whatever he picked will be good!” 

Did anything deter this girl? 

“He should have it ready by now.” I said, glancing over at the bar where the master was waiting “I could go over and…” 

“We could all go together.” Lucy offered, standing from her seat, “though I don’t know where Natsu ran off too.” 

A sinking feeling bled in my chest. Violet and Natsu had been out there for a long time. I knew that the whole point of this was to try and get them to reconnect, but I wasn’t sure how much involuntary one on one time Violet could take right now. 

“I think I saw him go outside,” I said, trying to sound disinterested as I watched Lucy crab walk her way out from between the bench and the table. 

“What would he be doing out there?”

“No idea,” I shrugged, looking away. 

“I’ll go see.” she said, and then she was gone, unknowingly off to break up a conversion that I didn’t really know anything about. I looked away from Happy and told myself I had done the right thing. 

*Violet's POV*

Natsu and I followed Lucy into the guild hall, where August and Happy quickly joined us. A quick read of August told me everything I’d missed,, explaining that he was slightly worried about the consequences of our accompanying fairies. 

I guess that meant that he hadn’t invited them by choice. The talk with the master must not have gone as planned. Though I figured it was just as well. Better go out with a couple faries than not at all. And as long as August and I were together… things wouldn't be too bad. 

August briefly explained to Natsu and I that the Master had told him to find someone to accompany us on a job. The others were honored that he would choose them, but I knew that it was a lie. The master had also picked our team. Though why Natsu and the others specifically, I couldn't tell. Nor did I know why August would lie about it, but there was no way to ask for clarification without letting the others know of his deception. 

As soon as everyone was on the same page, the group made its way over to where the master was waiting at the bar. I tried to put distance between myself and the fairies, falling into line behind August, but there was only so much I could do with five people in a skinny aisle, and ended up wedged between Lucy and August instead. Still, it was better than being stuck next to Natsu. 

“So,” the master said as we approached, “You ready for the job?” 

This all but confirmed my suspicion that he had been the one to decide who was going with us, but again, I kept my mouth shut. 

“I don’t see why not.” August said, looking down at the rest of us for confirmation. 

Natsu Lucy and Happy nodded, and I felt their excitement rize. I looked at the ground. Sure, I had been excited for some Justice Valkyrie jobs before...but it seemed wrong to say that this anticipation was the same...as at its core; this job would be about helping people, and the ones I took before were about killing them. 

The master shifted and handed August a job flier. Even from the back I could see the hole where it had once been mounted to the request board. Had he really pulled it aside just for us? What was so special about it? 

“You’ll have to leave pretty soon if you want to make it,” the master said, “but I don’t think it will be a problem.” 

August finished reading over the request and looked up. “We’ll take it.” he said. 

The master nodded as we stepped away, August still with his nose in the flier. I was to first to voice what I knew everyone else was thinking. “What exactly is the job?” I asked. 

“Do we need the train?” Natsu asked. 

“No train.” August said, “it’s here in town.” 

Maybe that was why the master had chosen it for us, so that we would still be within his reach if anything went wrong. 

“It’s at some school.” he said, “They want a demonstration of magic for some of the students. We have to be there this afternoon.” 

“So that’s why he gave it to us...the time limit.” Lucy said. Though I could tell that her doubtful feelings for the master’s intentions were from a place of love. 

“I guess that means we should get moving then.” Natsu said. 

“Sounds good to me.” August said, “it's probably better to be a little early so we can figure out what’s going on.” 

August shoved the request into his back pocket, and our newly arranged team made its way to the door.


	68. SIXTY EIGHT

*Violet's POV*

I walked near August as we paraded through the streets of Magnolia. From the moment I realized who exactly would be accompanying us to the job, to the moment we actually left the guild hall, less than thirty minutes had passed. I hadn’t yet had time to over think the possibilities of another job with Natsu. 

But for now I had other concerns. The master had told us that we were going to do some kind of demonstration at a nearby school. That was fine in theory, nothing to fight, no difficult puzzles to solve. But this job presented other challenges. For one, the incident on the train back to Magnolia a couple days before had proven to me that my talents were less than adequate when it came to talking to children. And then there was the matter of my magic itself. 

Unlike the other fairies or even August, my abilities weren’t exactly flashy. If this was going to be a demonstration for children, what was I meant to do, make them all sad? Next to the others I was sure my presence would be underwhelming. I suppose I could do something without fear of harming them, maybe make one or two of them fall asleep only to wake them up again. Surely that could count for something, besides, I wouldn't have to do much when Natsu and Lucy were with me. I knew that their abilities were much more viewer friendly. 

I supposed in a way, it kind of made sense. That the magic belonging to wizards form an official guild would be flashy and worthy of attention, whereas mine was meant to be done in the shadows, with no one to ogle or admire. 

No witnesses. 

A shiver ran down my spine, and I almost tripped over my foot. The action seemed to have alerted Lucy of my predicament, because she suddenly appeared at my side. 

As an instinct my eyes slid to the ground. Lucy reacted gently, disappointed, but understanding, and there was a hint of Natsu’s compassion in there too. A type of kind tolerance perhaps? 

“Are you nervous?” she asked. 

The way she saw it, talking things out could only ease my anxiety. I supposed she was halfway right, as now I was stressing over our conversation and not my upcoming humiliation. 

“yes.” 

My answer must not have been what she was expecting, as she turned to look at me for a moment before looking away again. “You’ll get the hang of it.” she said, “jobs are...kinda crazy sometimes.” 

I knew that she had once been overwhelmed by the atmosphere of Fairy Tail. but I also knew that she had jumped right into it, surrounding herself with the crazy. Wrapping herself in it. 

I didn’t have that kind of bravery. 

But her want, her need to comfort me, to even notice that I might be in need of comfort. It seemed like proof that I would be okay. As though empty words were no longer empty, all because they had been said in the first place. It didn’t matter if her words helped me, it mattered that she was making the effort to say them. 

“Thank you.” I said. 

And she smiled. 

“Happy to help! Let me know if you need any rescuing there.” she looked around briefly, “and I’m not just talking about the clients.” 

Before I could think of a response, the boys ahead of us stopped walking, before us stood the school beginning, the destination of our job. 

“Here goes nothing.” 

~~~

*August's POV*

We made our way out of the guild hall in a neat little line, as though none of us wanted to talk to any of the others, or wanted to be seen talking at least. I wondered how Violet would describe the atmosphere, if she could make some kind of comparison that was lost to me. 

Not that I could ask her with all the others around. As we walked I noticed Lucy slowly making her way closer to us, perhaps with the intention of talking to Violet. Ahead of us were Natsu and Happy, conversing in hushed voices and occasionally glancing back at us. 

As Lucy came up between Violet and I, I saw it as an opportunity to have a word with Natsu. I knew that Violet would be safe in Lucy’s care, not that I would be going that far anyway. 

I lengthened my pace to meet up with the others, leaving Violet behind. She still had her eyes on the ground, and seemed to be focusing on Lucy rather than me anyway. As I slipped away, Lucy gave me a strange glance, and at first I wondered if it was me she had been meaning to talk to. But then she fell into step beside Violet, and gave me a little nood. Permission to leave them. My response was to walk away, heading toward the others. 

Natsu and Happy were still talking in hushed voices when I approached them, though I still couldn't make out the words. For a moment I wondered if I should try and eavesdrop, but I knew that Natsu was too good a wizard to not notice me. Better to make my presence known before I startled him. Better not to invoke any unnecessary anger. 

I cleared my throat. 

As expected their chatter stopped immediately. 

They both turned to stare, as though I had appeared suddenly behind them sporting a third eye and extra limbs. I suppose I should have expected that. It wasn’t like the three of us had done much talking. Even before we were discovered I hadn’t said much to them. 

I watched as they both tried to play it off like I was a friend of theirs, and wondered what Violet would see, as she looked into their heads. 

“We need to talk.” I said, finally realizing that it was up to me to be the first to speak. I was the one interrupting them after all. 

“About what?” Natsu asked. His voice was carefully neutral, giving nothing away. Happy on the other hand wasn’t so lucky. His winds flustered nervously as he hovered ahead of me, looking between the two of us as thought watching an intense tennis match. 

I thought of how to play this. Natsu had been told to reach out to Violet already, but did he know I knew that? Did he know I thought it was a good idea? “I had a chat with the master.” I said. 

His face flickered momentarily before setting back down. Curiosity perhaps? I fingered the master would be my best way in, I was unsure of what he thought of Violet, but the relationship between him and Makarov was clear. Easy. 

Easy to exploit. 

“What did he say.”

“He told me to invite you and Lucy on this job.” I said. 

“I already knew that.” he said. I had known this too of course, but it was as good of a segway as any. 

“I wanted to let you know why.” I said. 

This got his attention. 

“It’s because of Violet.” I said. “I don’t know how much you guys had talked exactly, but the master seems to think that if you guys kiss and make up everything will be hunky dory for us.” 

“That’s what he told me.” Natsu said. 

At least we were on the same page on that one. 

“Do you believe him?” I asked.

He gave me a strange look. As though this wasn’t the conversation's natural progression. As though he hadn’t expected this. 

“Well yeah,” Natsu said, “Friends are good no matter the circumstances.” 

God I hated Fairy Tail sometimes. 

“Look,” I said, struggling for words where I had expected them to come easily. “I don’t know what happened in those woods that day. I’m not sure if I even want to know.'' a shiver ran down my back at the thought of Violet’s state when she returned from the Natsu job. And then him, right beside her, untouched. Undeterred. 

“But we’re here to stay.” I finished, “So you’re just going to have to get over that.” 

Both were looking at me with that piercing Fairy Tail gaze. I looked away, unable to stand it. 

“Did you think we didn’t want you here?” Natsu asked. 

I looked up. Why would they? 

“I don’t know how it worked back in Justice Valkyrie, but here, we don’t do things just because Gramps told us we should. I’m talking to Violet because I want to. Because I want you to stay.” 

My mouth opened...and then closed again. Gejeel had said something along the same lines when he had sought me out only a few days before. But here it was something more. Natsu, who had been the most affected by Violet’s perceived treachery, wanted us to stay? 

Before I could think of a response, or even an honest reaction, Natsu stopped walking, before us was the school building that held the job we’d been assigned. No more time for talking in circles with the one person who could solve my problems. We had to work.


	69. SIXTY NINE

*Violet's POV*

The building seemed to get taller the closer we came to it, a looming embodiment of my fear. Lucy, still walking beside me, offered a little smile as Natsu and August opened the doors. I took a deep breath, and then stepped inside. We appeared to be in a large open area, to our right was a sort of office, already I could see a secretary rusting forward to usher us inside. 

I noticed Natsu and Happy looking around in what seemed to be a lesser degree of awe. I realized, considering their background, neither one of them had ever been inside a school like this before. I wondered if he was imagining himself there, imagining what could have been if things had been different. 

Lucy didn't have the same reaction. Unlike Natsu and Happy, she held a kind of bitter recognition. I assumed she must have been in many private schools in her days before Fairy Tail. I couldn't imagine she would have fit in exactly. 

August held mostly the same kind of heavy wistfulness that I did. As with Natsu, we might have ended up here, with teachers to give us our lessons indeed of celebrated murders. Lessons in music and art rather than how to properly sever someone’s spinal column with a single strike. 

In my case, I would probably still be in a school like this. Not with kids so young, but still nearly as innocent. Would I have been happy there? Living a normal life? Was there some universe where I was a normal girl? One who couldn't even imagine what it might be like to have magic? To have a weight of my sins following me at every turn? Would I even care to appreciate what I had? 

The secretary approached us slowly, looking between us with excitement, and a little apprehension. “Are you the wizards from Fairy Tail?” 

In response there was a shuffling of fabric as we all flashed our marks. I subconsciously looked over at the thick bandage on my left shoulder, hiding the evidence of my previous affiliation. 

The secretary seemed convinced, and beckoned us into the office, leading us down one of the little halls to a large conference room. She gestured for us to take a seat, and we did, waiting for further instruction. Perhaps we weren’t too different from the students here after all. 

“Thank you all for coming.” she said, sweetly, lingering by the door, “someone will be without in just a few minutes to give you a few more details before you go in to see the students.” 

“Thanks for letting us know.” Lucy said. 

The woman looked back all of us one last time, as if somehow sensing the tension in the air, then she shut the door, and we were alone.

For a moment we all stared at each other, until Lucy took it upon herself to break the silence. “What age do you think the kids will be?” it seemed to be the first thing that came into her mind, and she had run with it, only worrying about breaking the quiet and not the conversation that it would lead to. 

“What’s it matter,” Natsu asked. He interlocked his fingered behind his head and leaned back on his chair, tilting the front legs so far off the ground it made me nervous. “Any age will think my magic is cool.” 

“And everybody likes cats!” 

Lucy blinked at them, I wondered if she, as I did, was realizing that the two of them were unaware of why she had spoken in the first place. But rather than become frustrated, or even pleasantly annoyed as I had often felt in her, she simply decided to roll with it. 

“Maybe fire has no age limit,” she said, “but some of my spirits…” 

“I don’t see what’s wrong with em.” 

“I can’t summon virgo in front of a bunch of preschoolers, Natsu.” 

August and I shared a look that almost made me burst out laughing. 

Natsu made a noise that made it seem like his brain had short circuited, then opened his mouth to reply. Before he could, the door to the conference room opened again, and a tall woman in the pressed pants suite entered the room. 

She looked over us, spotting a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “So you’re the Fairy Tail wizards.” she said, her tone on the edge of something unpleasant. 

“That’s us!” Lucy said, with an upbeat tone that didn’t match what I was reading. 

The woman smiled again, gliding over to the chair at the head of the table despite her four inch heels. She took a seat slowly, smoothing down her pencil skirt as she went. My eyes drifted around the table. It seemed I wasn't the only one that was slightly uncomfortable. 

“Now,” she said, and I felt the others around me snap to attention, “as I’m sure you’ve been informed you are here to demonstrate some magic to the children here at Magnolia Academy. I’m here to give you a little more information as well as a few ground rules before I send you off.” 

She looked around the room, as if daring us to challenge her. 

“The first thing that you should know is that the real reason you are here is because we’ve been having lessons about traditions and important parts of Magnolia. You are here as representatives of your guild to teach them about their town, not to distract them with some cheap parlor tricks.” 

I could practically hear Natsu’s first tightness under the table. 

“Is that understood?” 

We nodded. 

“Good.” she said, placing a hand on her temple, and rubbing as though she had a migraine. “Now I know it’s inevitable that the children will want to see some bits of magic, so I won't disallow it. But...I would encourage you all to remember why you’re being payed.” 

She looked around the room with piercing eyes, as thought she too could see into people’s minds. My face folded itself into the neutral look naturally, as did August's. The fairies struggled a bit more, lacking the years of training that we held, but the woman seemed satisfied, and stood with a nod. “I’ll lead you to the first class room now.” 

Behind her back I watched Lucy and Natsu exchanged a look. It seemed that they were communicating in much the same way that August and I sometimes did. Despite neither one of them having Silver Tongue, the message was clear to both parties. 

Don’t do anything stupid. 

I’m making no promises. 

I glanced to August, who puffed out his cheeks and released the air slowly. This was going to be a long day.


	70. SEVENTY

*Lucy's POV*

As the Fairies followed their escort through the narrow halls of the Magnolia Academy, Lucy found herself in the lead, perhaps because she had the most tolerance for the woman ahead of them. August and Violet followed, with Natsu and happy talking up the rear. 

Please don’t let them do anything stupid. She prayed. 

As they passed through the halls, Lucy couldn't help but let her eyes fall on the hundreds of drawings and assignments that had been hung on the walls. Simply rendered crayon depictions of people, animals and places. She supposed that answered the question of how old the kids were, not that she’d really needed an answer anyway. It was a no brainer that she couldn't summon certain spirits. It didn’t matter how old the kids were, it was better to keep some things to herself. She wasn’t sure if Taurus would even be able to fit in the building without his head touching the ceiling. As she walked over she’d been contemplating who would be the best option. Why were so many of her spirits such pervs? 

In the end she had settled on Loki, since he would probably be the best at taking direction. As long as he kept the flirting to a minimum. He seemed to be looking like a better option by the moment, after all, he was the most human looking of the bunch, and Lucy didn’t need a mind reader to know that the woman ahead of her didn’t seem to be a big fan of magic. 

It was strange for sure, but not unheard of. Whenever there was anything outside to the norm, some people were bound to be unhappy about it. If she wasn’t on a job, Lucy would have had half a mind to call her out for it, but as things were, she knew it would be a bad idea. She couldn't act like that on a job, not if it would reflect badly on Fairy Tail. and put the chance of payment in danger. And besides, Violet and August were still pretty new to this. They had to set a good president. 

She only hoped Natsu shared the same sentiments. 

After what seemed like miles of drawing draped halls, the woman came to a stop and knocked on a classroom door. Over her shoulder, Lucy would see clumps of little desks, with children that seemed to be about eight or nine peering over to see what was going on. Another teacher appeared and greeted their escort, then nodded and opened the door wider. They walked in. 

As she passed through the door, Lucy felt a presence behind her, and turned to see Violet getting closer to her, a look of concentration on her face. 

“You’ll be fine.” she whispered.

Violet’s eyes flicked up to her, and then back to the floor, but she nodded, the line of her shoulders relaxing. They passed through the doorway and into the back of the classroom. Students turned in their seats to watch them as they stood in a neat little line in the back of the room. 

“Class, these are the Fairy Tail wizards that I told you about, '' the teacher said, returning to the black board at the front of the room. “We’re still finishing up our lesson,” she called back, “if you guys wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes-” 

“It’s no problem,” Natsu called, “take your time.” 

The teacher hesitateD, then smiled, turning back to her board. Lucy leaned forward, trying to catch Natsu’s eye. Since when was he so polite? She supposed it didn’t matter. As far as Lucy would tell the woman from before would be staying to watch them. She would have to come up with a way to not go off on her before they had to leave. 

~~~

*Violet's POV*

The classroom seemed colder than the hallway but that was the least of my worries. As I had sped up to talk with Lucy, August slowly fell behind. Now I was stuck in the back of the classroom between Lucy and Natsu. 

I tried to reach out to August, to see if I could figure out how we have been separated. But he seemed intent on not looking at me. Not thinking about me. Had he done this on purpose? Why? 

The kids in front of us twisted in their seats to get a better look. Most of the eyes seemed to be on Natsu and Lucy, who they no doubt recognized from the Grand Magic Games, but the gaze was still too close for comfort. 

The woman on the other side of Lucy had her mouth pressed into a tight line, a practiced expression that was likely the cause of her many wrinkles. It was clear from the moment she had walked in the room that she didn’t like us. Didn’t want us there. 

It was far from my first time experiencing such a sharp disdain for magic, though usually it wasn’t from someone who was unfamiliar with dealing it on the daily. Back at Justice Valkyrie, wizards had been the scum of the earth, the people that got in the way of our work. The members of legal guilds. 

I was young when I was introduced to Takashi’s magic program. But not so young that evident hatred when over my head. It was not a popular choice to teach us. But the results had been too good to stop. 

Still, I could hear the offhand remarks in the training rooms, the staged attacks outside the barracks. I closed my eyes as though doing so could cut off the memory. Regulate your breathing, focus on something else, anything other than the woman at the end of the row. Before I could think about the consequences, my magic sought out the next most prominent aura in the room. 

It was Natsu’s of course. He held a heavy heart for the woman at the end, the same thing I felt for her minus the fear, but slowly it began to dissolve; concern and protectiveness, leaking down to melt it away like acid. I realized he was looking at me. 

“We’re still finishing up our lesson,” the teacher at the front of the room said, “if you guys wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes-” 

“It’s no problem,” Natsu called, “take your time.” 

I felt Lucy’s mind flash over to us, then become distracted. 

Natsu was concentrating, pushing out a calmness that I hadn't felt in him before. I looked up to find his eyes on me. 

He winked. 

I looked away. 

Had he said that on my behalf? So that I would have time to calm down? How did he know that I was nervous? Had it been that apparent? Whatever the reason. He had done it, and I was grateful. 

Before I could think better of it, I concentrated on that emotion. That gratefulness, snapping it up before guilt could taint it. I leaned to my right, and my knuckles grazed Natsu’s. He jumped back, not expecting the contact. But the message was clear, and he relaxed, his eyes slipping away from me and flashing around the room, evaluating the students. 

I took a deep breath, and then did the same. 

They all seemed to eight or nine, around the age I had been when August and I had received our first mission. How different things would have been...if he had never found me. But then...I knew we wouldn't be together.

Some of the students obediently turned back to the board, thought most continued staring at us. I figured it was only natural, that they would want to check us out. I knew that eyes would be on me from now until we returned to the guild hall. I sighed and tried to get used to it. 

At the front of the room the teacher continued her lesson. She talked about Magnolia's conception, and then led into history about Fairy Tail, the Fantasia parade, and other events that the guild participated in. Lucy nodded as she talked, trying to see a good example for the kids, putting faith in their teacher by proxy. Natsu leaned back against the wall casually, occasionally whispering to Happy in short whispers, correcting the teacher under his breath. 

August mirrored Lucy in concept, but his mind was far away. I tried to look attentive, but found himself thinking of other topics. I knew more information than I would ever need to use about Justice Valkyrie. I had been taught to be proud of my work there. But it wasn’t something that was shared. It was information that belonged to us, the chosen few. The world at large didn’t even know about our existence at all. 

I knew of course that there were parts of Fairy Tail that weren’t public knowledge. Things that the citizens of Magnolia would never understand. The way it felt to watch seemingly civilized people devolve into a bar fight. The way the master looked out at the members from his seat at the bar. Mira Jane’s cooking. The thrill of leaving on a job. 

I didn’t know much more about the history of the guild than the students before me, but I knew it beyond what any teacher could explain. How was I meant to convey that to a room full of children? 

“But don’t take my word for it,” the teacher concluded, “as you know, we have some real life Fairy Tail wizards in the room with us right now. Would like to meet them?” 

There was a chorus of “yes.” 

“Then I won't leave you waiting.” the teacher smiled, looking back to us, “Take it away.” 


	71. SEVENTY ONE

*Violet's POV*

Lucy led the way as we all awkwardly shuffled to the front of the room. I had to force myself to keep breathing. They were just children after all. Surely they would be too interested in Natsu or Lucy to pay any attention to me. But their gazes still seemed to fall on me like icy daggers. 

“Let’s start by going down the row and introducing ourselves.” the teacher prompted. August, who was unfortunate enough to be the closest to her desk started. 

“Well I’m August,” he said somewhat hesitantly, “I’ve only been in Fairy Tail for about a month now, but I’m getting the hang of it. Oh and I use requip and archive magic.” 

There was a handful of whisperers, mostly along the lines of, “do you know him?” “same magic as Erza.” 

Happy went next and was a bit better received. Natsu followed, and this time the whispering started before he even opened his mouth. A celebrity of sorts I supposed. 

But then the chatter died down, and the eyes turned to me. 

I took a deep breath as I felt several moods around me shift. The students and teachers with a kind of curiosity, perhaps stronger for the fact that they hadn't seen or heard of me the way they had the others. 

But the aura was different on my side of the room. Every one of them was thinking of me. Rooting for me, wanting me to succeed. 

“My name is Violet,” I said, sounding a lot more confident than I felt. “August is my brother.” not exactly true, but easier to say than to explain what we really were. “And I have Silver Tongue magic.” 

Relief washed over my heart, and the others’ at the same time. I was good at this. Half truths and manipulative words. Under normal circumstances I probably wouldn't have called my magic by it’s name, but outside of magic circles the title would mean nothing. As with the lie that August and I were bound by blood, somethings were just easier when kept simple. especially for this audience. Lucy followed after me, talking about spirits and Fairy Tail. the kids nodded as if they knew the information well. 

As soon as Lucy finished talking, the woman who had led us into the classroom appeared in front of her, taking charge of the conversation before even the teacher would get a word in. 

“I know that we all think magic is quite...exciting…” she gave us all a sideways glance that made my skin crawl. “But we are here to learn.” she turned to us. “Why don’t you tell us how being a member of your little guild makes you a good citizen of Magnolia.” 

I felt several stomachs flip at the phrase “little guild.” but not not even Natsu was stupid enough to act on it. Lucy was the quickest to recover. 

“Well, the guild participates in a lot of events around town,” she said, filling the silence before anyone did something reckless. “Um...who here’s been to the Fantasia Parade?” 

There was a flurry of movement from the students. August and I shared a sideways glance behind Natsu. Where are we going to be asked these types of questions too? Neither one of us would be able to answer them. Surely this wasn’t what we signed up for. I tried to remember what the job flier had said. “Magic demonstration”. I was sure of it. Was the whole reason for this because the woman in the pants suit hated magic? 

“That’s great!” Lucy said, “our guild puts that on, and lots of other things like-” 

“This is boring.” called a kid from the back row. 

“Ian!” scolded the teacher. 

“I wanna see a spirit.” said another. 

Lucy’s eyes flashed from the student to the woman in the back. She made a split second diction. “All right then, but only if you promise to listen.” 

All the children leaned forward as Lucy’s hand went to her belt, a moment later it returned with a silver key. I couldn't see Lucy’s smirk as much as I could feel it. She made a flashy movement that I wasn’t sure was really necessary, her magic seemed to below up from her in flashes of golden light. Was she really wasting magic energy on theatrics? 

Even so...the kids seemed to love it. I was underwhelmed when Plue popped into existence, but several of the children squealed with delight, all craning over to get a closer look. Plue turned to Lucy, as if asking for permission, she nodded and he began trotting between the desks, smiling at the children like a walking show and tell. 

As promised, the kids were silent, and Lucy rushed through some more random facts about Magnolia, even though she knew no one was listening. The woman in the back was glaring at her the whole time, but Lucy pushed onward, pretending not to notice. 

I could feel August and Happy getting restless, growing bored as the kids ignored Lucy. I didn’t even need magic to tell that Natsu was zoning out. He kept rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, as if trying not to nod off. 

A few minutes passed, and I could tell that Lucy was running out of things to talk about, but the woman in the back seemed pleased, probably at the lack of proper magic being shown. 

Just as Lucy was finishing up a description of the cherry blossom festival, Plue returned to her side, visibly exhausted. “Thanks for your help,” she said, “you’re free to go.” 

He nodded to her, then turned and bowed goodbye to the kids before disappearing in the burst of golden light. 

The kids in the room seemed visibly distressed at his absence, but Lucy filled the space carefully, pulling out another key, there was a flash of gold in her hand, but I only had enough time to realize it would be one of the zodiacs before she summoned another spirit. 

“Open gate of the lion! Leo!” 

Before anyone could react, a tall man in a dark suit suddenly appeared. Between my research and the snippets of conversation I had heard around the guild I knew that he had once been known as Loki, a member of Fairy Tail before Lucy had returned him to the spirit world, but this was my first time seeing him in person. 

After a moment of confusion, and perhaps having expected a fight, he relaxed and introduced himself. 

The kids looked onward with new interest. Particularly the girls I noticed. Even the others seemed to be rejuvenated, as if this was a sign that the fun was going to start. 

But not everyone was happy about it. The woman in the back for one and-

“Excuse me-miss Lucy?” 

Our attention turned to a little girl in the front row. 

“Uh yeah?” 

“We still don’t have everything for our worksheets.” 

With a start I looked across the desks. It was true, every student had a half finshed paper laid out in front of them. How were we supposed to know that? 

Lucy hesitated, to everyone’s surprise it was August that stepped forward. “Lets see what we can do about that.” he reached for the paper, and to my surprise the girl gave it to him. The rest of us made room when he booted up his archive magic, fingers flying across the keys to type in the first question. Information poured across the screen, enough to make some of the kids go cross eyes trying to keep track of it, but August flipped thought if quickly and picked out what was relevant. “Here we go, question one, everyone copy it down.” 

The kids looked at each other for a moment, and then smiled and did as he asked. I saw the teacher in the corner hiding a smile. Only the woman in the back seemed displeased. 

August continued to feed the kids their answers while Loki walked between the rows, making different parts of his body glow on request, and breaking pencils in half with a single finger. Happy joined him, frying around the room at top speeds, encouraging the kids to try and catch him as he walked by. 

If that wasn’t already chaotic enough, one of the kids in the front row had a question just for Natsu. 

“uh-Mr. Natsu.” 

He turned slowly, blinking at the name. I felt a little smile creep onto my lips. 

“Is it true that you can eat fire?” 

Natsu smiled, seeming to wake up for the first time since walking into the school. “You bet I can!” 

“Your teacher was showing us how matches work for science class.” said the kid matter of factly. “Can you eat that?” 

“As long as it’s fire!” he said. 

A chorus of “show us” erupted. 

“Well...only if your teacher says it’s okay.” 

All eyes turned to the young woman sitting behind her desk. She glanced over at the woman in the back, then looked away before she got a response. “Well, I don’t see why not.” she opened one of the desk drawers. “as long as you practice fire safety.” 

“Of course!” Natsu said, though I wasn’t sure how much fire safety someone who was fireproof would really know. 

The teacher leaned forward with the matches, and I realized that I was in the way. Not wanting to make things awkward, I reached out and took the box from her, walking it over to Natsu. 

“Oh dear Violet, will you prepare this meal for me?” Natsu asked. He gave an over exaggerated bow and winked as the kids around us giggled. 

I let out a deep breath, allowing myself to smile. “I would be honored.” 

I reached into the box and pulled out a match, lighting it on the first try. I held it out to Natsu, who called out a “thank you for this meal” before taking the flame of the match head with his bare hand and stuffing it in his mouth. 

The children cheered, and the woman in the back’s frown deepened. 

“Show us your magic Violet!” 

I froze, looking over to August, but he was in the middle of talking about requip with another group of kids. 

“Well...how about I make my brother fall asleep?” I asked. I knew it was a little unfair to sign him up without permission, but he was the only one I really felt comfortable putting spells on. 

“Can you make Natsu fall asleep?” asked a kid. 

Natsu stiffened. 

“Uh...yeah probably.” 

“Do it! Do it!” 

I glanced at Natsu, even though all I really wanted to do was run for the hills. He stepped closer to me, again emitting that infuriatingly calming aura. It’s okay. He seemed to be saying. I don’t mind. 

I took a deep breath and faced him, telling myself it was no big deal. I closed my eyes in concentration. Even if Natsu was willing to go with it, straight up knocking him out was going to take a lot of energy. I placed the heel of my palm on his forehead, curling my fingers to avoid touching his hair, and focused all my magic energy into one thing. All of the dreariness I had felt over the past few days, the combination of all of my sleepless nights, I balled them up and started pushing them into Natsu. 

He dropped like a stone. 

With a little yelp I tried to keep us both up as he tipped forward, but he was far too heavy for me, and we both ended up on the ground. The kids around us laughed, but I knew that something was wrong. It shouldn't have been that easy. Unless he was already extremely tired...I hadn’t bothered to check. Could it be that I wasn’t the only one missing sleep? 

Desperate to sift the children’s attention away from me, I moved to reverse the spell, this time gathering all the alertness I could find, giving back what I had taken from Natsu and then some. If he was losing sleep it was most certainly my fault. I would make up for it now. His eyes fluttered open, and I stumbled back awkwardly, careful to make sure he was no longer touching me. I didn’t want him to know what I had seen. The kids cheered again while Natsu looked around, rubbing his eye.

I found myself yawning, worn down now not only by my own drowsiness but Natsu’s. I hoped he wouldn't notice I had taken it. He got up smoothly and offered me a hand. The action appeared innocent enough, but I could almost taste his suspension. There was no way to get out of touching him. I reached up. He felt what I did, and forward, almost instinctively. He pulled me up smoothly, and I got my balance just in time to hear an alarm go off near the teachers desk. 

She walked back out and clapped her hands, snapping the students to attention. “That is unfortunately all the time we have today.” she said, “everyone say thank you to Fairy Tail for coming into the day.” they did, and we nodded in acknowledgment. 

I realized it was the first time anyone had referred to me as such, like I was as much a part of the guild as the other members around me. A few days before the idea of it might have made me feel dirty. But not now. Not today. I smiled and waved as we left the class room, happy to belong there despite the circumstances, and trying not to think about the fact that Natsu and I were going to have to have yet another uncomfortable talk.


	72. SEVENTY TWO

*Violet's POV*

We were led out of the classroom by the same woman who had led us in, and somehow she seemed even less happy this time. Natsu seemed more than pleased with himself, whispering to Happy just low enough that I couldn't hear him. Lucy and August seemed a little more wary, sharing concerned glances over my head. 

I had expected the woman to just lead us back out the main entrance, hand us the money and be done with it. But instead she took us back though the office, and we ended up in the room that we had first met her in. I could see that the money had already been set out on the table, presumably by one of the other secretaries. 

“Sit.” she ordered.

We sat. 

“I’ll have you know that the law requires I pay you.” she said, “but I will be sending a letter to your master detailing your misbehavior.” 

I felt my heart sink, and August's as well. In our years as assassins we had heard those words a handful of times. Jobs not competed to the clients liking, loose ends we’d been unable to tie up. 

The scars on my back tingled. I had half a mind to beg the woman to reconsider. 

But then I noticed Natsu Happy and Lucy’s feelings on the matter. 

They were trying to hold back laughter. I glanced around the room. August had gone white. But the others seemed undeterred. 

“To allow the children to witness such a crude display of sorcery...yes I will be writing a letter, that your own may punish you as he sees fit. In the meantime. Get out of my school.” 

No one needed to be told twice. Natsu grabbed the money and tucked it away, and then we all filtered out of the room, leaving the angry woman alone behind us. 

As we passed back through the office, some of the workers smiled or waved, seemingly not knowing that we had caused any trouble, and then Natsu led us all the way out of the building, and into the afternoon sun. 

He held the door as we all exited, and then pressed it firmly shut. As soon as he had done so, both he and Happy burst into laughter. Even Lucy was smiling. August and I exchanged a glance. Was this some kind of hysterical breakdown?

“I’m sorry.” I said immediately, appealing to Lucy who at least seemed coherent. “I knew I shouldn’t have done that spell on Natsu- and now the master- oh.” 

Now Lucy wasn’t the only one confused. “What do you mean Violet, you did nothing wrong.” 

“I-” what?

Natsu stopped laughing long enough to wheeze out, “That was great she was so mad.” 

I stared at him, but it was August who spoke. 

“Did you miss the part where she’s writing the master?” he asked, “Aren't you worried about that?” 

Lucy and Natsu looked at eachother, no one was laughing now. “He’ll think it’s hilarious.” Happy said. 

“Did you really think we were going to get in trouble for that?” Lucy asked. 

August and I looked away sheepishly. I felt my hand creep up to my neck, bunching up the fabric that I knew was hiding my scars. I felt Natsu fill with potent anger and disgust. The change was so sudden that my eyes flashed up to him. He was staring at my hand. I dropped and looked away quickly. No one else noticed. 

“Anyway Natsu, let’s see that cash.” Lucy said, holding out her hand as we started walking. I could tell that she is mostly trying to dispel the awkward situation, but I didn’t care. I turned away from Natsu entirely, walking on the other side of August. 

The conversation as we walked back to the guild hall was light, with August speaking only occasionally, and me not at all. We spit up the money, and Lucy counted carefully hers again before stashing it away. 

Happy made a comment about her being money hungry, and Lucy remarked that he didn’t have to pay rent. 

We all laughed even though it wasn’t really funny. 

Natsu kept on glancing over at me from the other side of August, trying to draw me into the conversation. “What do you think Violet?” “Sounds like something Vi would do.” 

I engaged as minimally as possible, with August coming to my rescue when one word answers won’t suffice. 

I knew Natsu wanted me to talk to him, but I couldn't quite bring myself to do it, not after my outburst earlier. I didn’t want him reading into me. But I knew the longer I waited the more assumptions he would draw. Not to mention what had happened at the school. Would he notice I had given him more alertness than I had taken? Could he see the way my eyelids were drooping? I didn’t want to know. But I couldn't avoid him forever. 

Whether because of my increased tiredness or because of my reluctance to return to the guild hall, I found myself struggling to keep up with the others. At first August was matching my pace, but then he faded away, and it was Natsu who was at my side. 

“Vi!'' August was calling me from a few meters ahead. I looked up, squinting in the setting sun. “Take your time.” he called, “We’ll meet back at the guild.” 

I looked over to see that Natsu was still with me, but didn’t want to so blatantly imply that I didn’t want to be with him… “Alright.” I called, “See you soon.” 

And then he ran to keep up with Lucy, leaving me alone. Alone with Natsu.

I glanced over at him as the others disappeared around a corner. Did he know how obvious he was being? Did he want me to talk first? What did he want to talk about in the first place, my outburst this morning or what happened at the school? 

I was too tired to deal with this right now. 

“You’re quiet again.” he said. 

I looked over, not sure that I’d heard him right, and then returned my eyes to the ground. There was no reason to hide what I thought anymore, I’d told him almost everything earlier. “What’s it to you?”

He shrugged. 

I counted seven paces before he spoke again. “You gave me more awake than I gave you.” he said. 

So he had noticed. 

“I took a lot.” I said, “and you dropped like a fly. I wanted to pay you back.” 

“I gave a lot.” Natsu corrected. 

I glanced over at him under my hair. “Same difference.” 

Immediately I knew that he disagreed, but rather than press the point farther he moved on. “I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” he said, “I noticed you haven’t been sleeping so I thought…” 

My mouth went dry. I hadn’t even considered that possibility. I had assumed that he had also been tried, but he had willingly pressed upon me the alertness that he thought I needed? He had wanted me to keep some of it? 

I knew in theory that my magic could be used like that, as a catalyst for transferring feelings and emotions from one place to another. But I had never met anyone who was okay with sharing what they had. I was used to having the bad end of the deal when it came to emotion trading. 

But had I ever really used the spell on a willing participant? One that would want the best for me and not the worst? And for Natsu to be comfortable enough with me to want to help in that way…

“I didn’t need your help.” I said finally. 

Rather than take offense he noted that I wasn’t denying the lack of sleep accusation. I mentally cursed myself, but took deep breaths. Erza and Grey already knew. It was only a matter of time before Natsu found out too anyway. I wondered if he expected me to tell him. To confess all like I had before. Was that his plan, to keep pressing me until I burst? Had that been his plan all along? 

“Listen…” he said, “about this morning-” 

“I don’t wanna talk about it.” I said. 

He nodded, apparently this was a given. 

“I just wanted to say that I didn’t mean to make fun of you.” 

Apparently there was no avoiding it. 

“It’s fine.” I said dismissively. 

I knew he didn’t believe me. I didn’t care. By now we had reached the guild hall, and the end of your conversation by proxy. I took a deep breath and opened the door, letting the smell of booze and magic wash over me. 

immediately I knew something was wrong. More people turned to watch me enter than usual, Lucy stood from a nearby table and walked over to us, as though she had been waiting for our return. 

Even Natsu noticed something was off. “What’s wrong?” he asked. 

Lucy looked between us, carefully holding her next words in her mind before speaking. “Laxus is back.”


	73. SEVENTY THREE

*August's POV*

Leaving Violet behind might have been a trick to make her talk to Natsu, but now I was glad I had. As soon as we walked through the door to the guild hall, I knew that something was wrong. The way the other members turned to look at us...the way Lucy seemed to tense beside me. I knew if she, who always seemed so comfortable within the walls of the guild hall, was noticing that something was off, I wasn’t just over exaggerating. I scanned the room carefully, trying to figure out what the source of all the strange reactions could be. 

Then I saw him. 

Standing near the bar, talking in low voices with the master was a looming mass of what appeared to be entirely mussel. A long coat trailed from lightning blond hair and broad shoulders. Happy and Lucy both glanced back at me before walking farther into the hall. After a moment's hesitation, I followed. Where else was I meant to go? I had left to give Natsu and Violet privacy. I couldn't just go running back to them now. Even if I wanted nothing less than to go hide under a rock. 

I followed Lucy and Happy deeper into the guild hall. As if noticing the sudden tension, Laxus broke off his conversation mid sentence, turning to look at us. To look at me. And still Lucy and Happy marched on, heading all the way up to the master. 

“Welcome back.” he called. But his eyes didn’t quite match his tone. “Did you lose Natsu and Violet along the way?” 

“They stayed back to talk.” Happy announced. 

“Ah,” the master nodded, his eyes sliding over to me. “I see.” 

Lucy went on to explain how the job had gone, warning him of the letter the woman from the school had promised. The entire time, Laxus was looking down at me, as though trying to draw out my soul via sheer force of will. It took all I had not to shrink under his gaze. I stared straight ahead, pretending to be engaged in the master;s words. Pretending not to notice. 

How much had Laxus been told? Did he know who I was? What I had come to do? I highly doubted that he stared at all the guild’s new recruits like this. He hadn’t introduced himself yet. Was it because he knew I had already researched him? I knew it only made sense for the master to tell him about us, he had been on the kill list after all. I knew that in theory he deserved to know...but the way he was looking down at me…

“Well I suppose there’s nothing we can do about it now,” the master said once Lucy finished explaining what had occurred on the job. “Who knows maybe some of those kids will pursue magic despite their teacher.” 

Just as Lucy and Natsu had said...he wasn’t mad at all. But that was the least of my problems now. 

The master’s eyes flicked back to me, and then up to Laxus. I looked away, wanting plausible deniability of their silent communication. 

“I suppose an introduction is in order.” the master said. “Laxus, this is one of our new members, August.” 

I glanced between the two of them. surely this wasn’t his first time hearing about me. The lack of response confirmed my suspicions. I’d have to ask Violet to do a reading later to make sure. 

Realizing that neither man was going to respond, I took it upon myself. “It’s good to meet you, my sister and I joined a few weeks ago...thought I guess you already knew that.” dared a glance at him, trying to figure out exactly how much he knew, but his face gave nothing away, I looked away under the pretense of a bow. “I’ll be in your care.” 

“Likewise.” the older man said coldly, then after a glance at his grandfather, “The Raijinshuu and I’ve been out of a long hall job. Thought I guess you already knew that too.” 

Was that supposed to be a hint? 

“Shame I couldn't have met you earlier, things might have been different.” 

I shiver ran down my spine. Laxus and the master were definitely working together on this. 

Before I could think of anything else to say, I heard the door to the guild hall open behind me. I felt my heart sink. Violet was about to walk right into this mess. I looked over to Lucy, pleading for her to help me. She nodded and then disappeared into the crowd, walking in the direction of the door. At least she could break the news to Violet before she too was face to face with what would have been our job’s greatest challenge. What might still be our greatest challenge now. 

Laxus and the master both watched Lucy go, a moment later Happy gave a hasty farewell and and fluttered out of sight. So much for power in numbers. 

Laxus was still looking down at me in a way that made my skin crawl. I turned my eyes to the master. His gaze was no less piercing, but at least it was familiar. It felt paranoid to say that they were ganging up on me, but whatever way I looked at it, that was what I saw. 

“I should be going,” Laxus said. “I’ve been on the road for a while now. I want a shower.” 

I struggled not to show my relief. 

“But I’ll be at the Moon Glow restaurant tonight at eight,” he added. “I want you to join me.” 

I only had enough time to feel my heart sink before he turned with a flick of his cloak and waded through the crowd and out of the guild hall. A glance at the master gave me no reassurance, and I turned back to the bulk of the hall, trying to accept that I had a dinner date with the one man who was of the most danger to me.


	74. SEVENTY FOUR

*Violet's POV*

“You’re not going.” 

“I don’t have a choice Vi.” August poked his head out of his room, his hair only half brushed. 

I sat cross-legged on the sofa in our apartment, digging through both of our heads trying to find a reason for him to stay. I just couldn't understand what made him think this was a good idea. I’d thought Natsu and Gajeel were intimidating when I first saw them, but Laxus made them both look like lost puppies. 

I wasn’t an idiot. I knew what the master was doing, both of us did. But August was the only one falling for it. Already Gajeel had tried to appeal to him through their shared dark past, and August had told me that he felt it wasn’t the same. Laxus’s attempt to take over the guild definitely hit us a lot closer to home. But that didn’t mean it was a good idea to go on a dinner date with the guy. 

August walked out of his room, taking the key from the table and shoving it into his pocket. “It’s perfectly safe Vi.” he assured me, “He’s just another fairy in the end.” 

“A fairy the size of a forest vulcan.” 

August chuckled, but didn’t change his mind. “All the more reason to feed him our story from the source.” 

I opened my mouth only to close it again. Was August planning to tell him everything? I immediately hated the idea, but I had to remind myself that this was August's story too. He was allowed to tell whoever he wanted, even if I wanted to keep it to myself. 

Then again...August didn’t know a thing about the part of the story I didn’t want to tell. The only people that knew about that were me, Topaz and Kaze. 

And Natsu. I reminded myself. He could have told them. But I knew he hadn’t. I could tell from the way the others looked at us. They had no idea what had really happened in those woods. 

Was there a reason he hadn’t told them? 

August came over and gave my shoulder a little squeeze, reminding me of the problem at hand. Stupid. I should have been using that time to think of ways to convince him not to go, not worrying about Natsu. Again. 

“I’ll see you later tonight.” 

“I took a deep breath. I knew there was nothing I could do to stop him.

“Don’t wait up for me,” he said as he moved to the door, “You need your sleep.” 

I let out a little smile as he left the apartment, trying not to think about all the bad things that could happen now that he was out of my sight. 

*August's POV*

I took a deep breath before entering the restaurant. Despite the facade I’d put up for Violet...I could feel my hands shaking in my pockets. This was not a dinner I was looking forward to. 

It was clear to me that Laxus knew at least a little about what had happened with my and Violet since he had been gone, but I knew there would be gaps. The only question was which side was the on, the master’s or the practical one. Was he here to threaten me or to help me. There was no way to be sure until it was too late. 

In truth I didn’t even know which one I wanted. The threat was objectively bad, but it wouldn’t make me swallow my pride as a helping hand would. Was he acting as a younger, hardened agent of the master or as the guardian of the guild. Either way tonight was not going to be pleasant. 

By the time I approached the entrance to the restaurant I felt my heart beating faster than should have been possible. I had been here only a few days before with Gajeel, and at the time I had thought that was the worst case scenario. Now here I was with a pile of muscles the size of a blue whale. If I’d needed to fight Gajeel at least I would have been able to buy enough time to flee. But if Laxus decided to hurt me it was all over. 

I took a deep breath and opened the door, hearing a cute little bell ring above my head. It wasn’t like he could kill me out in the open. I would just have to decline any field trips to dark allies. 

My eyes didn’t have to scan the sparse crowd for long before settling on Laxus. Outside the guild he somehow seemed even bigger. I swallowed hard. 

“May I help you sir?” 

I blinked and realized that one of the waiters had come over to help me get seated. 

“Uh no,” I said, trying to keep my voice even, “I’m with him.” 

The waiter’s gaze darkened. “Ah.” was all he said before turning on a dime and disappearing back into the kitchen. 

I stared after him for a moment before moving towards the table. Did Laxus have some kind of reputation here? Surly it had been a long enough time since the battle of Fairy Tail for his other merits to fix the past. 

I was still thinking about that when I took my seat at Laxus’s table. “There you are.” he said gruffly. 

I didn’t know how to respond. It was clear to me now that he knew who I was. Or some of it at least. 

“I see you meet my friend over there.” he said. 

I looked up. “Didn’t seem supper happy.” 

“Yeah well they don’t like me here much.” 

At first I thought he was gonna elaborate, but then he said nothing. I wondered if he had intended for me to ask him about it. I didn’t want to know. 

“Anyway,” he said, “let me know when you’re ready to order, I already know what I want.” 

“I’m ready.” 

I had already planned on getting the same thing that Gajeel had made me try last time, even if only to save time. 

Laxus leaned forward and smiled, “You got it kid.” he waved his hand and a disgruntled waiter appeared. He looked at me first and I mumbled out my order, still not used to eating in restaurants. 

“And for you Mr. Dreyar?” 

Laxus smiled, gesturing behind him “the usual.” 

The waiter cringed, and then bowed, “of course sir.” 

I watched him go, more confused than before. For the first time I looked up at the wall, right above Laxus’s head was a large metal sign advertising a free meal to anyone who could eat ten pounds of ribs in one go. Next to it was a line of photographs, the first couple of strangers, and then at least twenty of Laxus. 

He followed my gaze. “They act like it’s a challenge.” he said, “Your food’s on me tonight since mine’s gonna be free.” 

The look on my face made him chuckle, but I could think of no response. Before either of us could speak again, the waiter appeared with my food and then returned to the kitchen bringing out a cart laden with large piles of meat. 

Laxus grinned as he picked up one of the plates. “Now,” he said, “let’s talk.”


	75. SEVENTY FIVE

*August's POV*

The smell of barbecue sauce and the whispers of strangers filled the air around me as Laxus leaned forward, fixing me with a gaze that reminded me of his grandfather.

I still had no idea exactly how much the master had told him about Violet and I. Perhaps he had only been encouraged to talk to me as Gajeel had, and had yet to discover why I had been sent to Fairy Tail. I hoped that wasn’t the case. As worried as I’d been that he already knew about us, I didn’t want to be the one to tell him. 

“So,” he said, wiping his mouth with one of the many napkins that had come with the food. “You know why I asked you here?” 

My mouth went dry. “No.” technically it was the truth. If he didn’t know, and I didn’t tell him, what would happen? 

His eyes narrowed, I got the feeling he didn’t believe me. So maybe he did know then. 

“But you have a guess right.” 

I knew the answer he wanted, the only question was whether or not it was smart to give it to him. 

“Yes.” I said carefully. 

“Well let's hear it then.” 

I took a deep breath. At this rate it might be possible to dance around the real problem for sometime. But a glance at the heaping piles of food still waiting in front of Laxus didn’t give me much hope that I could make it the whole night. At this point I was only procrastinating the inevitable. But that didn't mean I was going to stop. 

“Because the master told you to.” I answered, only realizing after it was too late that Gajeel hadn’t liked that answer too much when I gave it to him only a few days before. 

Laxus laughed, the sound was deep and rich, but it didn’t soothe my nerves. 

“Well you are right about that one kid.” 

I forced myself not to react to the title. 

“I tell you what,” he took a large bite, “If you’re not gonna get this ball rolling I’ll do the honors for ya.” 

He looked up at me, waiting for a reaction. When I didn’t give one he moved on anyway. “Normally I don't like it when people come into my guild trying to start shit, but I’ll make an exception for you.” 

So he did know then. My mind started racing, looking for ways out now that I had all the details. 

“But only if you start talking,” he added. 

Well that limited my options. I needed to stay on Laxus’s good side, because of his influence at Fairy Tail of course, but more pressingly because of his rippling muscles. 

“What do you want me to talk about?” I asked. 

My fear showed more than I wanted it to. 

Laxus smiled. 

What I really wanted to know was exactly how much the master had already told him, but I knew better than to ask. He was probably going to be comparing stories to make sure things lined up. I couldn't lie. 

But that didn’t mean I had to tell all. 

“Let’s start with the name of your old guild.” he said. 

I noticed he said old guild. Did that mean he understood that there was no way we could go back there? That was a good thing right? Unless I was reading too far into it. 

“Justice Valkyrie.” I said. 

He nodded, “I’ve heard of them a couple times.” he said, “rumors here and there. Where’s the guild hall?” 

His attention seemed to be on his food, the conversation casual. But I could see the way his body was tense. I knew what it was like to gather entail though conversation. He wasn’t fooling me. 

“We don’t have one.” I said. I had already told the master as such. “There’s four different compounds that we rotate between. Right now they’re all up north.” 

“And what happens to the basses you’re not using?” 

I hadn’t thought of explaining this to the master, and he never asked for any information that I hadn’t willingly given. “Higher ranking members watch over them, keep them hidden.” 

“Does anyone else go there?” 

“Above my pay grade.” I shrugged. “Me and Violet were still doing grunt work.” other than being in Takashi’s program, there was nothing special about us. 

“How far above your pay grade?” 

I shrugged. Getting promoted hadn’t been something that was on my mind until recently. This didn’t seem to satisfy him, so I gave more information rather than an answer. “We were going to move up after this job,” I said, then as an afterthought, “if we had finished it.” 

He nodded slowly, and I realized that I had moved the conversation closer to its end point. The thing that he really wanted to know, how close he had gotten to really running Fairy Tail. 

“Describe the job.” 

I took a deep breath, telling myself that this was no big deal. It’s just a debrief. I told myself, it’s just information. 

“It was harder than anything we’d done before.” I said, “by a lot. We’d done deep cover a few times, but never with such a big kill list, and never against other magic users.” 

He nodded, and I assumed he had already known this as well. 

“So why did you take it then.” 

I stared at him. 

“We didn’t have a choice.” 

“Then what made you stop.” 

I only became more confused. Had the master left that part out too? Or was he getting off on making me say it. 

“We got caught,” I said, “obviously.” 

If he noticed my sass he didn’t acknowledge it. 

“By Natsu.” 

“That’s right.” 

“And if you hadn’t been...would you have kept going?” 

I realized that this was the question the whole night had been leading up to. The one thing that he, and the master really wanted to know. 

“There’s no way we could have beat him.” I said, though I knew it wasn’t exactly true. I still didn’t know exactly what Violet had done out in those woods, but clearly she hadn’t given up without a fight. And even then...if we hadn’t been rushed by Takashi, we could have found a less direct way to take care of them, explosives and poisons could have been on the table. 

“No matter what we did it would have failed.” I said. An outright lie. There were plenty of scenarios that ended with five dead fairies, even now, there were ways that we could get the job done...if we really wanted to. 

“And if you could have killed us…” he said, “if it was easy, would you have stopped?” 

I stared at him. His face gave nothing away, but his question both accepted my lie and forced me to give the answer he wanted anyway. My finger curled under the table. He was using the same tactics I had been taught. 

If this had been an easy job, if Takashi hadn't pressed us...would I have stopped? With the fear of our old master, and the promise of a promotion on the horizon. I knew my answer. I knew Laxus wouldn't like it. 

But then...Violet.

I had the same training she did. We both had the same empty promises echoing around our heads. It was better to die than to give up. And she would have. She would have fought Natsu until there was nothing left in her. But somehow, she had let him win. She had accepted her first defeat. 

I wasn’t sure that she ever could have killed them, even if it was all she wanted, I didn’t think she could. And if Violet refused to go on...then despite my lack of remorse… 

“No.” I said, “I couldn't have actually done it.” because she wouldn't want me to. 

Laxus smiled. He believed my half truth had no caveats. 

“Well then,” he said, “I don’t really see what all the fuss is about.” 

I opened my mouth only to close it again. “You’re-you’re not angry.” it was a realization as much as a question. 

“Do you want me to be?” 

I didn’t know what to say. A part of me kind of did want some kind of reaction.

“Look,” Laxus said, tuning serious again, “If you’re not planning on going around killing people, then that’s great. The two of you have only really started one fight, and as far as I can tell your little friend got a hell of a lot more than she gave. That’s more than I can say.” he looked away for a moment, and I wondered if he realized I knew what he was referring to. “The way I see it, you’re all paid up.” 

I blinked. I had been planning on using my help in avoiding Justice Valkyrie as my penance. I had been counting on it… but if I didn’t need to then...did that mean I was dragging Fairy Tail into something that wasn’t their fight. 

“Then why is the Master still helping hide form them,” I said, “If we don’t owe each other anything...” 

I had been meaning to check him in a lie, but instead his smile widened. 

“I said you’re all paid up,” he said, “doesn't account for that old guild of yours. Something tells me you and Violet have years of shit that needs pay back.” 

I stared at him, but it only seemed to amuse him. 

“You wanna destroy them don’t you?” he asked. 

The glint in his eye was half fairy mischief and half burning rage. Two things that I had grown familiar with, but not often seen together. Before me was a man who had turned his past mistakes into a fierce love for his family, blood tied and otherwise. He wasn’t telling me to forgive and forget. He wasn’t telling me that the anger I held in my heart was wrong, but giving me a place to direct it. 

“Yes.” I said, voicing it for the first time, “I want them to pay.” 

He smiled. “Then let’s fuck them up.”


	76. SEVENTY SIX

*Violet's POV*

Despite August’s request, I did wait up for him, just not where he could see. Curled up in my bed, tucked carefully under the warm covers, I refused to close my eyes until I heard him return. 

And eventually he did, though all I could hear was the front door opening and closing, I felt him relax and pictured him lending against it to take in a deep breath before departing to his bed room. 

I told my body that this meant that I could sleep, but it took the rest of me a long time to get with the program. Despite how tired I was, how much my body wanted it, I could never quite seem to reach the inky blackness that I knew I needed. Everytime i thought I was close to passing out, my body would jerk awake again, as if knowing what was waiting for me in dreams. But in the end fatigue won out, and I found myself drifting in the dark water of my own subconscious. 

~~~

This time I dreamed I was standing in the guild hall. The fact that I was anywhere but the woods should have been reassuring, but instead I felt a looming dread. Perhaps it was the juxtaposition of it all. The guild hall was safe. The guild hall was home. But now I could sense that the natural inviting aura of it had turned sour. 

A grim reminder….this home wasn’t built with people like me in mind. 

All around me were the fairies, sitting in their usual spots, and appearing to be talking together in the loud obnoxious way that I was still growing used to. But the only sound that reached me was the rush of my own fear tainted blood pumping through my head. 

And there was something else too. Another presence that shouldn't have been there. I realized then that just as I was cut off from the sound of the guild hall, so too were the emotions that surrounded it lost to me. 

The creeping malice that I felt was coming from an intruder. I stood and ran between the tables, doing my best not to trip over the fairies’ outstretched legs as chased after the bad feeling, getting closer and closer until my heart felt like it would burst. 

And then I saw her, and everything froze. 

It was me...but not me. She turned to look my way as I halted a few feet in front of her. She was wearing the same sneak suit that I had used in my battle with Natsu, but it had yet to be destroyed. Her long brown hair fell even and unsigned around her shoulders. She gripped a sword, and behind her were splayed a pair of wings, moving forward and backward absently as I had sometimes seen Happy’s do. 

“I-” I swallowed, “I don’t understand.” 

The other me smiled, tilting her head mockingly. “Don’t you?” she asked, “I think you know exactly who I am.” 

I glanced back to her wings. The silver sword in her hands. 

“That’s right,” she said, “I’m a Justice Valkyrie.” 

I took a step back, for a moment expecting my tight to bump into the table furniture in the room at all, and all of the guild members were standing where their chairs had been, still talking as if nothing had happened. 

“What did you do?” I asked, my fear slowly sliding into anger. 

“I didn’t do anything.” Not me said, “things are happening just the way you want them to. The way we want them to.” 

“No.” I said, and all of the fairies turned to look at me, the room seemed to become even more silent even though I knew nothing had really changed. “No, that’s not true I don’t want this.” 

“But you do.” 

They all started moving in closer, crowding around me in the perfect circle, soon they overtook my copy, drowning her in a pile of emotionless bodies. Five fairies had taken the lead. The ones that had been on the kill list. In front of me Natsu smiled, but the expression was flat, his eyes still burning with the same fire I had seen in the woods. 

I closed my eyes…

And they were gone. I was alone in an empty guild hall, blood that wasn't mine dripping down from the wings on my back and the sword in my hand. 

~~~

I woke with a start to find cold floor pressed against my cheek. I realized I must have fallen out of my bed in the night. A childhood habit that Justice Valkyrie had tried and failed to beat out of me. I shivered, and not just from the cold. 

I sat up slowly, untangling myself from the blanket and throwing it back on the bed before wading off to the bathroom. August’s bedroom door was open, and I could hear shifting clothes from inside, a rhythmic scraping, the sound of a hair brush perhaps. I caught just enough of his aura to realize that he hadn’t done much sleeping the night before either. 

Looks like both of us are in for a fantastic day. I thought. 

I was itching to ask him how it had gone with Laxus the night before, but since I figured he would have already told me if he had been seriously maimed, I decided there where more pressing matters to attend to, like getting the pile of itchy unbrushed hair away from my tingling neck. 

I tried not to think about the fact that I was preparing to return to the guild hall, where Natsu and the others would be waiting. I swallowed hard as I finished my business and returned to my room to change. I carefully re-wrapped the bandage around my left bicep, hiding the mark that claimed me as a member of Justice Valkyrie. It seemed to burn under its covering, as if forcing me to pay attention to it even when it was out of sight. 

There was a light tap at my door. 

“Yeah?” 

August opened the door gently. “Ready to go?” he asked. 

“As I’ll ever be.” 

He nodded and disappeared from view. I took a deep breath before following him out the door to the apartment and down to the street. 

“Looks like Laxus didn’t kill you too much.” I said, “that’s always a plus.” 

August laughed on instinct, but it wasn’t as light as I’d hoped. “He didn’t kill me.” he agreed. 

“Do you wanna tell me what he did do?” I already knew the answer. But I knew it was polite to ask.

“Not just yet.” August said, “I’m still working out what it all means myself.” 

It didn’t seem like a conventional answer, but I didn’t press him. I could tell he was teeming with anticipation, a mix of good and bad. Whatever he and Laxus had discussed, it changed how he saw things going forward. I hoped it was for the better. 

In no time at all, the guild hall appeared over the horizon, silhouetted in golden light. I turned my eyes to the cobblestone beneath my feet, telling myself it was to avoid the sun. 

I had a horrible feeling, that somehow, we would open the doors, and the guild would appear as it had in my dream, all the tables disappeared, and the members waiting in ominous circles, their mouths moving wordlessly. 

A glance had my hands told me they were free of blood, but could my conscience say the same? Still my feet propelled me to the place that contained my greatest fears, and I let them drag me along, trying to convince my heart to slow as August placed his hand on the door and pulled.


	77. SEVENTY SEVEN

*August's POV*

The moment I opened the door I started looking for him. Even in the chaotic guild hall, Laxus wasn’t hard to miss. I noticed belatedly that he was perched in the same spot at the bar that I usually sulked in, the master hovering near him, talking quietly even though his eyes were on me. Was that an invitation to come closer, or a request that I stay away? 

A glance at Violet told me that I wasn’t the only one who was distracted. Her eyes shifted around the room, as though she could see something there that I couldn't. I guessed her magic made that partly true. 

I looked back toward the master. He was still staring at me. 

“Do you think-” 

“The master wants to talk to you.” 

We spoke at the same time, then smiled sheepishly. 

“It’s like you read my mind.” I said. 

“Must be magic.” 

Her voice was quieter than it should have been. I realized she had been quiet all morning. Well...quieter than usual anyway. “I can-”

“Go.” she said. “I’ll be fine.” 

I wasn't sure if that was really the truth. But I knew that arguing would only be embarrassing for both of us, not to mention making her clamp down harder. 

“Alright,” I said, “but come get me if you need anything okay.” 

“Okay.” 

I knew she was unlikely that she would actually interrupt us, but I felt better having put the option out there. I could only hope that she would come to me with any problems as I turned in the direction of the bar. 

As they had the day before, the master and Laxus stopped talking when I approached, but this time they were smiling. 

“Morning,” Laxus said, with a grin so wide it sent a silver up my spine. I had to remind myself that we were allies now. No. Not allies, friends. 

“Morning.” I said carefully. 

“Laxus was just telling me about your conversation late night,” the master said with a dry smile. 

“Oh,” my eyes flicked up to Laxus, but he wasn’t looking at me. I wondered if he had included the heavy language he’d used with me. Did the master swear? 

“Uh...what do you think?” 

“I think we have much to talk about.” 

*Violet's POV*

I lingered in the entry way for a moment after August left, trying to think if there was any way that I could get close enough to listen in without being noticed. 

I knew it was unfair that I even wanted to eavesdrop in the first place, August would tell me everything in time. He would tell me everything now if pressed, but I couldn't bring myself to ask. Not yet anyway. 

I was still confused about how they treated him compared to how they treated me. I was given nods of encouragement and fluffy stays in Lucy’s apartment. He was given private time with the guilds strongest members, not to mention the master. From what little information I had gathered about it, their talks almost resembled councils of war. 

Why was I the one that had to swallow my pride in their charity, when August got a place at the master’s right hand? I knew that I couldn't blame him for it. And I wasn’t jealous exactly either. Every time the master so much as looked at me I felt like I was caving in on myself. 

Was that the difference? They treated August almost the same as Laxus or Gajeel, some war hardened mastermind who was only the begrudging victim of circumstance. They treated me like I was made of glass. But then again...weren't they right? 

I could still feel cold shivers tracing up and down my spine as I looked around the guild hall. Remnants of memories from the most previous nightmares. 

They’re not real. 

It might have been true. But my heart said it wasn’t, that the empty guild hall from my dreams might have been a reality. 

But not anymore. 

Maybe not. Not by my hand. Not directly. 

I felt a change in August ahead of me, thought I hadn’t been paying enough attention to know what had caused it. 

He looked to the master and nodded, and the two of them wrapped around the counter, heading for his office. A familiar sight. But to both of our surprises, Laxus didn’t go with them. A quick read told me he had better things to do, and as soon as the others disappeared behind the bar, he turned away, as if to head for the exit. 

“Violet!” 

The call shocked me out of my reading, and I blinked dumbly, turning to see Happy gesturing to me form a table several yards away. With him were the usual suspects, Lucy, Erza, Grey, and inevitably...Natsu. 

With August having another little pow-wow with the master, I had no reason to decline. I took a deep breath, and approached them. 

As I got closer the smell of booze seemed to intensify, making me slightly sick. My memory supplied me with what I had been trying to suppress, repealing the bustling tables with empty space, followed by twitching corpses. The lights fell too bright, the sound somehow muddled and too loud at the same time. My heart beat faster than necessary, and every deep breath I took to calm it only seemed to suffocate me more. 

The others were smiling up at me. They were happy that I was joining them. Happy that everything was okay. But it wasn’t true. Justice Valkyrie was still out there. Takashi was still out there, at least Natsu had to know that. It had been pure luck, and my failure that saved them last time. 

What would happen when someone more competent came along? 

I suddenly felt sick. And it must have shown to, as I felt the fairies’ auras before me turned from a neutral happiness to a smothering concern. 

“Are you feeling alright?” Natsu asked. 

His very words seemed dipped in his damn compassion. 

“I need the bathroom,” I blurted, feeling a twinge of relief when I turned away from them. 

I walked quickly, only paying enough attention to not trip over my own feet on the way to my refuge. As thought from a distance I noticed Laxus half way between the bar and where I had been standing only moments before. Belatedly I realized that he might have been coming to talk to me. 

But the thought of facing him only drove my feet to move faster, to get farther and farther away from him, from all of them, with every step, as though I could walk out of the guild hall like that. As thought I would walk out of their memory, and remove them from mine. 

Laxus stopped to watch as I power walked past him, his gaze joining the others’ on the back of my head, burning into my skull until I slipped into the bathroom and locked the door behind me.


	78. SEVENTY EIGHT

*Violet's POV*

It took me ten minutes to calm down. It had been a long time since I’d had a meltdown that seemed to revolve around nothing. Usually they at least had a reason, seeing Natsu again, taking more fear than I could handle. But this time I had done nothing. Were my emotions really that out of whack? 

I knew that I couldn't hide in her forever. Natsu and the others had probably already picked up on the strangeness of my sudden rush away from them. Normally I wouldn't be as worried about it. In the past, if any of them noticed anything they at least had the decency to keep it to themselves. 

But that didn’t include Natsu. Rather by lack of shame or of brain cells I wasn’t sure, but his tendency to voice every concern was starting to become a major hindrance to my peace of mind. I had to keep him away from me. Especially now. But he wasn't the only problem. 

Laxus had definitely been intending to talk to me before I’d fled the scene. It wouldn’t be a pleasant experience for anyone if he ended up giving me a little chat now. I had no doubt that, just as he must have with August, the master had assigned him some task to read into me. Wasn’t Natsu enough? At least he wasn’t reporting everything back to the master the way Gajeel seemed to, or at least...not that I knew of. 

But then...wasn't that what August wanted? To be the master’s golden boy, just as he had been back at Justice Valkyrie? I pushed the thought away. It was an unfair wording. August’s perceived loyalty to the master was the only thing that was earning us our place at Fairy Tail’s table. Without him...if it had been on my shoulders to prove our innocence…

Maybe I didn’t mind that August and the master were so close. 

It wasn’t like I wanted any part of that world. I wanted no claim to the plan to protect us from Justice Valkyrie. August and I had always been two halves of the same whole. I used my silver tongue to gather information, he used his confidence to craft the lies he fed our targets. The same lies he was feeding Takashi now, this time without my help. 

But then...would I have given it? 

My thoughts were interrupted by a tap on the door. I took a deep breath. If nothing else, my thoughts of the nightmare had been pushed from my mind, replaced rather than removed, but out of the way all the same. 

At least for now. 

“Violet?” 

Natsu. 

I took a deep breath, and reached for the door. I’d made my decision already. I didn’t want to talk to him. I doubted he would be coming for me if August was around to stop him, and as long as he was still with the master, I had no real reason to stick around. There was plenty of fairyless town waiting right outside the guild hall. I just had to get there. 

I opened the bathroom door. Natsu stared down at me, his concern only seeming to intensify now that I could see him. Now that he could see me. I focused on an invisible point above his right shoulder. 

I couldn't handle both him and the voices in my head at the same time. Not today. I forced myself not to pay attention to my magic, trying to separate it from myself as though I were closing one eye. 

“Vi, I-” 

“I’m fine.” I said immediately. 

Get out before he could say more. Get out before I could even read him. 

“I just wanted to-” 

“I know.” I wasn’t hard to guess. “I don’t want to talk.” 

The rush of disappointment and concern was so strong and gushed up over my defenses. My hand tightened at my side, pulling in close enough that I could feel little pricks of pain where my nails met my palm. 

“I-” 

“You’re in my way.” 

He froze for a moment, confused rather than hurt. “Right, sorry,” 

He stepped away, standing to the side as if preparing to follow me. 

I took a deep breath and then forced my feet to move, moving past him. My hand brushed his as I went for the door. I mentally cursed myself for not taking better precautions. 

“Violet-” 

“Violet this, Violet that,” I said, turning on him. “I’m so sick of hearing my own name.” 

He looked at me as thought I’d struck him. Maybe it would have been better if I had. I couldn't feel his physical pain. There was something twisting in his stomach, a dark realization. Then denial. He was still trying to convince himself that I was the victim here. 

“Just stay away from me,” I finished, trying to see many of the nearby guild members looking our way, including Lucy and the others, still watching from the table where I’d left them.

Tears of shame and frustration burned at the back of my eyes, and I turned away from them. I felt as though I were diverting half my energy to keep from crying, and the other half to get out of the guild hall before I did. 

Each step was a relief, and a terror, I could feel their eyes on me, their quiet concern, as though they were ready at a moment to recreate the scene from my nightmares. My hand reached the door and flug it open, stepping out into the perfect spring air. I told myself I was free, but it was as though I could still feel their gaze on my back, like I was coated in it like mud. I broke into a run. 

It wasn't long before my feet started to ache, protesting in the pinchy shoes I had bought because they looked like the pair I had seen Lucy wear once. This was what I got for choosing to put on something so impractical. I bent and took them off, hardly stopping before I started running again. 

I was nearly at the edge of town now, reaching the woods where we had fought the forest vulcans on our first job. My feet left the hard concrete and were met with soft earth. It reminded me of old jobs, waiting in tree tops for wagons or magic mobiles, ready to jump down for quick kills before disappearing back into the forest. 

Those had been my favorite type of jobs once. Now my favorite where the ones where my new fairy team mates asked the least questions. Finally my body reached its limit, and I came to a stop, leaning against the trunk of a large tree. Though the place where I had fought Natsu was still miles away, I knew that it was the same woods. The same trees, the same looming energy. 

The rough bark behind my back suddenly became less confronting. I had felt it before, on much less friendly terms. My legs ached in a way that I knew they shouldn't be. This was the most physical exertion I’d faced in a while, and whether I liked it or not, my body was still healing from my failure with Natsu. 

I threw my shoes to the ground, then sunk down next to them, not caring if my new clothes got dirty. There was a time when I’d thought that telling Natsu off like that would have given me some kind of satisfaction. The first time I’d done it it felt a little good in the moment. But then he had to go and ruin it by not getting offended. 

But this time….there had been real hurt in him. Not that I needed my magic to know that. I could have seen it on his face. The others must have seen it on his face too. They must have known what I’d done to him. Would they hate me for it? Did I want them too? 

I’d thought I’d wanted Natsu to hate me. It was what he was supposed to do. I had tried to kill him. And he had hated me...for a time. When he believed I was the man in the mask who had stolen his friend. There had been a real rage there, a desire, a need to destroy, but it had all but dissipated as soon as the mask fell away, as if knowing my lies before the truth made it different somehow. 

And even now...he hadn't hated me when I’d left the guild hall. He had only been hurt. Disappointed, betrayed, heartbroken even. And I knew better than to think that it was just the echo of his emotions making my heart sink so low. I hadn’t liked hurting him either. 

I brought my hands to my face, then my neck, caving in on myself and holding them there, as if waiting for a building to collapse on top of me. My nails were biting into my flesh there as if doing so could somehow tear my magic out, tear even the memories of it out so I didn’t have to always know what they thought of me. 

I let out an impulsive shriek of dismay. 

Someone stifled the border of my magic’s reach. 

My confusion was replaced with an intense fear in a flash. I jumped to my feet, curing myself for not bringing any weapons. 

“Who’s there?” I called. 

I pulled my hands up to a defensive position. Even weaponless, I could still hold my own in hand to hand combat long enough to think of a plan. The presence was coming closer. I saw that it was casual, attentive, and looking for something. I swallowed. There was something else there too, a kind of depth that I only associated with one trait. 

Whoever was after me was a magic user. But it wasn’t Natsu or any of the others. 

“Show yourself.” I called. 

Still they got closer. And I knew that they had heard me, and decided not to answer. Any well meaning fairy would have spoken up by now. Only a few more seconds and we would be face to face. I stepped forward, putting my back to a tree, and hoping I was hidden from the view of the stranger. I waited as they approached, hardly daring to breathe. 

A twig snapped a foot away. 

I jumped out from behind the tree, throwing a blind punch at what should have been neck height, a well practiced blow that would put anyone one the ground. 

As it was, my fist collided with dense muscle. And the only reaction was a grunt, and a couple stumbled steps backwards. 

I darted out of range as the stranger regained his balance. 

“Hey there,” he smiled, “You’re Violet I take it.” 

My heart sank. Somehow this was worse than a faceless attacker. 

“Laxus.”


	79. SEVENTY NINE

*Violet's POV*

The few seconds of confidence that I’d felt in the hands of my instincts melted away as I was thrown into yet another awkward situation. My eyes found comfort on the forest floor, staring at the parts of Laxus’s shadow that were still discernible though the patches of silhouetted leaves. 

“Gotta say I didn’t think our first interaction would be a punch.” he said. I knew he was joking and I still couldn't believe it. 

“I didn’t mean to,” I mumbled. Despite my anxiety, my body was starting to relax now that the threat of an attack was gone, “You should have told me it was you.” 

“I was worried you were going to bolt.” he shrugged. His tone was casual, but there was something else there, like a warning but upside down, a reassurance? A question. Did he want me to deny it? It probably would have been a lie. 

When it became clear I wasn’t going to respond he filled the silence. “Wouldn't be the first time I was introduced to someone with a punch,” he said. The casualness came naturally, but it teetered on the edge of something more dangerous. Brutal honesty probably, “thought usually the people I meet that way are...taller.” 

It wasn’t what he had been intending to say, but the quick fix didn’t make me feel any less awkward. 

“It was a good punch thought,” he said, as if only thinking out loud.

“I didn’t mean to.” I blurted again. 

“No, it’s cool,” he back petaled, “probably hurt your hand more than it hurt me.” 

There was a shuffle of fabric, and offer. I looked up to see an outstretched hand. “May I?” 

So that's what he was after. 

My immediate reaction was to pull away from him. I wasn’t some circus animal to be gawked at. I didn’t owe him a reading. But my magic told that it hadn’t been his intention. He was curious, but it wasn’t about my magic. He really didn’t know. 

To decline would mean I might offend him. And I would have to explain my magic as an excuse. To accept his offer would be to expose my distrust, my confusion over the incident with Natsu. But then again… if he had followed me out here, if he had known I had run away… he already knew most of it. 

I gave him my hand. 

As soon as our skin made contact he jumped back, a familiar reaction to me. 

“Sorry,” he mumbled, “That’s your magic right?” 

I nodded, but didn’t meet his eyes. I told myself that if he had been planning to hurt us, then he would have started with August the night before. But we were all alone out in these woods. A shiver ran down my spine, my body remembering what had happened the last time I’d been alone in the woods with a fairy. 

He took my hand again, and this time didn’t pull away. I could feel him processing the emotions he felt there, but his resolution was fogy, unsure. It was inevitable that he would be unable to sort out as much as I could have with the same information. Silver tongue was a skill as much as an ability, and even though I wished I wasn’t, I was good at it. 

After a few moments, he decided he didn’t have enough information to act on. Laxus devised to say nothing about what he’d read. I’d been spared that embarrassment at least. 

He looked over my hand carefully, frowning at my knuckles, still an angry pink from how they’d hit him. “It’s not too bad,” he said, but rather than relieved he was surprised. I guessed it wasn’t that hard to figure out why. I could imagine an armature bar fighter breaking their hand against his face. The idea made me smile...but so did the praise. 

“I’m not some second class ruffian.” I said, then instantly regretted it. He already knew this. He knew I was a trained killer. 

A glance at his face gave me a flash of raising eyebrows before my eyes fled his. But it wasn’t anger or fear that was pulling them up...it was a kind of... chagrin. I had amused him. 

“Good to know,” he said. I waited for him to let go of my hand, but he seemed to be holding it tighter, something darker replacing his sly smile. He turned my hand over, so it layed palm up in his. I felt his stomach twist, but was unsure of why. 

He reached up and uncurled my fingers. There were the four little crescents that my nails had imprinted when I’d been faced with Natsu earlier. A physical reminder of my inability to keep control. I flushed deeply and pulled my hand away. He let it go, his mind still on what he’d read there. 

I felt the urge to run again. He had no intention of letting me off easy. 

I wondered if I should ask him why he had followed me. It was clear that we hadn’t met by chance. He had been trying to get my attention even back in the guild hall, as soon as August had left with the master. Was this intentional? For him to get me alone? Surely not. 

His mind was still on the scars on my hand, and then something broader...I felt eyes on my neck, and wondered if there were any scars peeking out there as well. I took a deep breath. He had no intention of rushing our conversation, so that meant it was up to me to send him on his way. 

I wished now that August had told me what they’d talked about the night before, that I may use it as some kind of ice breaker. As it was, I decided it was best to be direct. 

“Why did you follow me?” I asked. I had expected the words to come out definitely, as they had during my conversation with Natsu. But this time I wasn’t so lucky. Apparently he didn’t even need to be reading me to know I was afraid of him. 

“I wanted to talk to you.” 

Well it was better than wanting to attack me. Probably. 

“About what?” again my voice was small, revealing more desperation than confidence. 

Laxus either didn’t notice, or took it in stride. Perhaps he was too focused on his objective to even notice me at all. For all I knew he was doing this for Natsu’s sake. Perhaps he had seen the fight and come to get the whole story. 

But from what I could tell, the two of them hadn’t been that close. And why not send someone I already knew? Grey or better yet Lucy? Why send a stranger? 

“Are you afraid of me?” he asked. 

I looked up at him. The question was genuine, despite it being asked on an impulse. 

I thought of how firm his chest had felt when I’d struck it. 

“Yes.”

Who wouldn't be? 

He didn’t smile this time. Had he expected me to lie? 

“I took your brother out to dinner yesterday,” he said, “I could treat you now, even it up.” 

“I’m not hungry.” 

“We can just talk here then.” 

It was worth a shot. 

Laxus turned his back to me, looking around for a moment. His eyes rested for a moment on my shoes, which I had discarded at the base of a tree a few feet away. He let out a little smile and settled down next to them, patting the ground in invitation. 

I took a deep breath, and accepted it.


	80. EIGHTY

*August's POV*

I looked over my shoulder as I followed the master into his office for what felt like the hundredth time. At first I had expected Laxus to flow to us, perhaps to discuss our conversation in greater detail within the privacy of his grandfather’s office. But he lingered by the bar, watching us go. 

Behind him I saw Violet turn toward a table seating Natsu and the others. It confronted me that she wouldn't be alone. But I could still feel a twinge of anxiety in my gut about leaving her alone with what part of me still regarded as the enemy. I told that part of me that she would be safe. That logic said there was nothing that could happen to her. It didn’t listen, and the main guildhall disappeared behind a wall before I had the chance to do much convincing. 

The master waited at his door as I walked in, heading for the same chair that I always did. He closed the door behind us with a final sounding click. I tried to relax into the chair as the master wrapped around the desk and found his. 

“Am I in trouble?” I asked before I could help it. 

His eye brows razed in a way that made me regret the question, feeling suddenly silly. 

“Is there a reason you should be?” he asked. 

I shrugged. Perhaps it had been an old idea from justice valkyrie that made me ask. If the master there requested to see you, it was never for anything good. 

Makarov smiled warmly. “You’re not in trouble.” he said, then leaned forward, his eyes darkening. I reconsigned the pose. It was the same one that he held when he asked for more information on Justice Valkyrie. The same one he’d held that night when he’d forced me to tell all. I swallowed hard, feeling my Adam's apple scrape against the collar of my shirt. 

“Correct me if I’m mistaken,” he said, “but according to Laxus you would like to start fighting Justice Valkyrie in earnest.” 

My mouth felt suddenly dry. It had been all fine and dandy to admit I wanted to hurt them when it was Laxus sitting in front of me, hunched in a back table, egging on my violence. It was another feat entirely to admit it in this bright, clean office, the calm and measured face of the master floating before me. 

“I- I want to be safe.” I said. 

It wasn't entirely true. It was the biggest logical reason to dismantle my previous guild, but there was another reason to...a heavier one, the fact that this was the longest I’d ever stayed in one town. That I didn’t know how to go shopping or order food at a restaurant. The scars on Violets back. 

The master appeared to take my answer at face value. But a part of me knew that he was too wise to really believe it. 

“Maybe,” I said, “Once Violet gets settled better, I can go back there and…” I trailed off, the idea had been kicking around in my head for a while, but I hadn't given it enough attention for it to grow into a plan. How could I fight against them? There had been other defectors, Kaze and Topaz, and they had been unable to do anything. And they far outranked me. There was no way I could bring down the whole guild alone. 

The master watched me, and I grew uncountable. He had the same look in his eyes that Violet sometimes got when she was reading me. 

“As I believe Laxus already told you,” he said, “Fairy Tail looks out or it’s own.” 

I stared at him. 

“That includes you now.” he continued. “If you want to fight them, we will join you.” 

I swallowed hard. I wasn’t a team player, but I had seen what Fairy Tail could do, with them on our side… but was that fair? I bore their mark. I ate their food and did their jobs. But I still couldn't make myself believe that I belonged. That either of us did. 

“You-you don’t have to do that.” I said. Surely there were other ways. “We could call the Rune Knights, let the council know where all the bases are.” 

“And how would you do that and keep yourself out of jail?” 

I looked at my hands. I hadn’t been planning too. Fairy Tail might be ignoring the blood on my hands at the moment, but the council wouldn't be so naive. Still...it would be worth it, if Violet could stay here safely...even without me, the others could take care of her. But then…

“That puts Violet in danger too.” 

How was he always one step ahead of me? A hand came up and ran though my hair on it’s own volition. I was losing control again. “I know…” 

“There are other ways to dismantle them.” 

I knew that too. 

“We could help you.” 

“I can’t ask you to do that!” the words came out more desperate than I wanted them to. A few weeks ago I wouldn't have been above using anything and everything to my advantage. But….

The guild had already given us more that I could ever pay back. Given us more than I ever deserved. I couldn't ask for more. 

“You’re not asking us.” the master said. I looked up at him, and noticed a fist curled on the table. An upper lip twitching with words that it didn’t have permission to say. “You’re giving us permission.” 

I sucked in a breath. I had often heard the other members of the guild refer to their master as “Gramps.'' My first reaction had been disgust. To watch them disrespect him like that, even though they were my enemy... And as my debt to him grew, so had my confusion. But now I understood. 

his quiet power. His righteous anger. He was the head of this guild. The head of this family. This viper. And they were all angry. As angry as I wanted to be. 

I let out a smile. 

“Do you have a plan?”


	81. EIGHTY ONE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys, just a slight trigger waning for characters mentioning that they wanted to die in the past. It doesn't go into any detail, but thought I would put it out there just in case, stay safe. <3

*Violet's POV*

I didn't like the idea of sitting on the ground where Laxus could so easily over power me. Logic said he wasn’t going to try anything funny, but years of instinct still put my body on high alert. This must have been his plan all along, to talk to both me and August. Though I didn’t understand why I would be important. There wasn’t anything that I knew about Justice Valkyrie that he didn’t. And the master had been keen to all but ignore me for a while now. 

So what did he want? 

“I saw your fight with Natsu.” 

I felt as though my heart had stopped in my chest, and then realized that he meant our confrontation before I left the guild hall. 

“It wasn’t much of a fight,” I said, the tingles of phantom fire still lapping at my arms. 

“Your disagreement.” he amended. 

I wasn’t sure that was quite right either, but I didn’t correct him. 

He waited for a moment to see if I was going to speak and then continued on anyway. “Do you argue often?”

What a strange question. His intention was clear enough...but how to answer. First there was what I really thought, which was complicated enough, but then I had to figure out some half truth to tell him. This whole conversation was a minefield. 

“Maybe it’s none of my business,” he shrugged, falsely assuming the reason for my silence. I heard him shift to glance over at me, but I kept my eyes firmly on the ground. 

“Geez,” he sighed, “the old man said you were quiet but…” 

So he had talked about me with the master then. 

“I just can’t think of anything to say.” I said, feeling a little bad for making him do all the talking for so long. Now that it was all but confirmed that he had been sent here by Makarov, I knew I had to be more careful, but at the same time, the questions probably weren't’ coming from him, but from the master himself. 

He tilted his head to the side, as if he had water in his ear. I risked a glance before darting away. Was his silence meant to be pay back for me doing the same earlier? There was nothing in his head that could help me be sure. He still had the same aura that he had when I’d first sensed him, cool and confident. It was as if he didn’t even care what my answers were. 

“You can just cut to the case.” I said. 

“Pardon?” 

“I know the master sent you here,” I said, “just say what you have to and we can both be on our way.” 

I watched him carefully, it had been a risk, both to pull back the curtain on our stupid little social game, but I was tired. I wanted to go home. 

“I guess both of you aren’t fans of small talk.” he said. I noticed that he was smiling. Again, I was amusing him. As if I were some cute little toy or animal. It made me want to scream. I was trying to be serious. And he couldn't even give me the dignity to stand on equal ground? 

“Look,” he said, “I know you don’t wanna hear it, but what you did...it’s really not that bad.” 

I blinked. Had I misheard him? 

“I mean, I can’t account for anything before you came here,” he added quickly, “but as far as Natsu goes...something tells me he’s not that upset about it.” 

“I tried to kill him.” I said, more as a reaction than a defense. The words made the back of my throat burn, but Laxus didn’t seem to notice. 

“Join the club kid.” 

“It was different for you.” I said. 

He raised an eyebrow, and some of his feelings of superiority melted away. He hadn’t known that I knew about his past. Perhaps he had been planning to tell me, to forage some kind of companionship. 

“I don’t know how you thought this was going to go,” I said, gaining false confidence in his misjudgment. “But I don’t wanna join some I-was-personally-victimized-by-Natsu club, because it’s not really true for either of us. We both started a fight we shouldn't have. But that’s the only thing we have in common.” 

His amusement was gone. Apparently my outburst had earned his respect. 

“We both lost.” he offered. 

“You only barley lost to both him and Gajeel.” I said. Just the thought of both of them at the same time sent a silver down my spine. I’d wanted his respect, and I’d gotten it, but now I wanted to lose it again, to cut our ties altogether. To prove that we weren't the same. “And then you got kicked out, you got your chance at retribution.”

The words didn’t affect them the way I’d hoped. There was no sting of memory, but something calculated. Was he reading into me based on how I perceived the situation? I pressed on, desperate to pull away, to destroy any semblance of connection between us. 

“I came here specifically to kill him, and you-then I put forward the most miserable attempt at a fight ever, and he let me live!” 

The silence that followed was deafening.

I’d said more than I’d meant to. My hands had rolled into fists again, stinging the still tender flesh on my palms. I felt like crying, or screaming, or running away and never coming back. Here I was, spilling my guts out to a stranger, and for what? Because he thought it would be funny to follow me right after I’d pissed off Natsu? Because his stupid grandpa told him to? I didn’t owe him anything. 

He was still processing what I’d said, working through any loophole. Looking for a way to calm me down. To console me. 

I didn’t want to be consoled. 

I took a deep breath and stood up, leaving my shoes on the ground beside him, and turned to walk away. 

I heard him stand behind me, but forced myself not to look. 

“Did you want to?” 

I froze. “What?” 

“Did you want to die?” 

His tone was casual, but it couldn't fool me. This had been the question he’d been trying to lead up to. The thing that the master wanted to know. Had this been what he’d asked August? Or had the master already been sure of his mental state after all their meetings? Did he really care about mine? 

It wasn’t worth finding out. 

“It doesn't matter.” I took another step forward, and felt a hand clamp down on my arm. His grip loosed as he took in an initial reading, as if in apology. 

“It matters to me.” 

And despite the origins of the question being the master, I knew that it was true. And I knew that he could feel the way the thought of it twisted my stomach, even though it lightened my heart.

To die for Justice Valkyrie would be an honor. Or at least...it should have been. I should have been proud to display my broken bones, glad to die in battle, even if it had been cowering at his feet. 

But the blow hadn’t come. 

And despite the consequences that washed over me in it’s stead… I had been relieved. 

“I thought I did.” I sighed. 

The grip on my arm raised, and it fell limply to my side. If it hadn’t been for my magic reading into him...I would have thought that Laxus had disappeared as soon as his skin left mine. 

“And what do you want now?” he asked. 

I wrapped my arms around myself, feeling a silver despite the warmth. 

“To stop feeling guilty that I didn’t.”


	82. EIGHTY TWO

*Violet's POV*

Laxus offered to walk me back to the guild hall, but I declined. There was no way to be sure that August was done with the master, and I wasn’t brave enough to face Natsu again. I knew that an apology was inevitable. But it could wait a day or two. 

We walked in silence until we reached the cross roads where we would have to part. I expected to slip away quietly, even unseen. But Laxus paused at my side, preparing to speak. I had half a mind to continue walking, to pretend that I hadn't noticed, but my feet slowed to a stop below me, waiting for him to gather his thoughts. 

“What you told me today…” he said. 

I braced myself for his words as if fending off blows. 

“You should tell Natsu.” 

Whatever I had been expecting, it hadn’t been that. To tell the master, or August even I would understand, but Natsu? And for Laxus to be the one to suggest it…

“See you around kid.” 

And he started off toward the guild hall. I lingered for a moment, my legs unsure of what I wanted them to do, then turned and went the other direction, heading for the center of Magnolia, and the safety of the apartment that waited there. 

I would face the guild hall again tomorrow, with August at my side. Not that I had much of a choice anyway. I would have to return to the guild hall, and to the people that waited there. To Laxus who knew my secrets, and Natsu who was the source of them. 

But first I would have the chance to talk to August, and find out what Laxus had asked him, if it had been the same question across the board, or if he had sought me out in particular. 

I had been coherent enough to tell that Laxus had been asked to interrogate me on the master’s behalf. But that didn’t mean that he wasn’t interested in the answer. How would he tell the master what I’d said? Could it get back to Natsu, further complicating our relationship? Or even worse if August found out. I had yet to try and figure out what he thought it would have been like to die for Justice Valkyrie’s cause. Did I even want to know? Would he be ashamed of me? Shamed to know how I had failed at Natsu’s feet that day in the woods? If he hadn’t considered it yet, I wasn't one to be the one that put it in his mind. 

I reached our apartment and walked in, closing the door behind me, feeling suddenly small now that I was cut off from the rest of the town. The four thin walls had once represented a protective barrier between us and the rest of the world, but now they seemed to be looking down on me, as if they were judging me for what I’d wanted. What I’d realized I didn’t, as Laxus had come to do. 

Or had he? 

I was still so confused as to why he would bother asking. I understood the image that the rest of the world cast upon thought of wanting to die, though until a few minutes ago, I had assumed that Justice Valkyrie was the one that had it right. There were still a lot of their teachings kicking around my head. 

Perhaps Laxus had been sent to ask because the master really had been concerned for my safety. Was that why August had been given freedom so much earlier than I had? Why had I never been left alone? 

I haven't mentioned anything about when talking to the master right after coming back, and I hadn’t really had a proper conversion since then. But there were other ways...Natsu for one. And the master had read me that night, just briefly. Had he seen smoothing there that I hadn’t thought to hide away? 

I told myself it didn’t matter. For reasons I still didn’t quite understand, Natsu hadn’t killed me, and I no longer wanted him to. End of story. Right? 

I pulled myself away from the door, slipping off my shoes for the second time that day. It was still early, but I wanted a shower, I wanted to wash away the thoughts that I knew had been put in my head by my old guild, to wash off the look Natsu had given me before I left my current one. The feeling that snaked up my spine every time the master glanced in my discretion, like he knew me better than I knew myself. 

I walked into the bathroom and shut the door, striping off the clothes that I’d spent so much time picking out only a week before and throwing them on the ground in a heap. The moment the hot water hit my skin I felt my body relax, August would be back soon, and then it would all be okay. 

*Laxus's POV*

Laxus walked toward the guild hall for a few paces before turning to watch Violet until she disappeared around a corner. As soon as she was out of his sight he felt an involuntary shutter run up his spine, as if an after effect of the intensity of her presence. 

Laxus wasn’t exactly the world's most mysterious guy, but something about knowing he could be read at any moment, to have his intentions revealed...it was a little unnerving. He wasn’t afraid of the girl in the traditional sense. Even if she had been still out to kill him, he doubted it would have been much of a problem. But somehow knowing that she was on their side made it stranger…

August’s was a story that Laxus could understand. He could see through cold exteriors and logic based thinking to the anger underneath. It had been that understanding that allowed him to convince the kid to get all excited at the prospect of marching into battle with team Fairy Tail. 

But Violet was different...when she did give answers, they seemed genuine, it was the silences that were confusing. The master had told him that here were many differences between how Violet and August were handing things, but when he’d walked into the woods, he hadn’t been prepared for what he was faced with. 

He knew from watching her run in with Natsu that he hadn't exactly caught Violet at a good time. But to see someone that guarded...to feel it for himself as he had when their skin touched. It wasn’t something he had been prepared for. 

Laxus took a deep breath when he reached the door to the guild hall. When he entered he noticed that both August and the Master were absent from the main hall, and let out a little sigh. He hadn’t known August for long, but he seemed like the type that would worry over details. No wonder he was still in with the old man. Even so...Violet needed him right now, even if she didn’t know it. And the kid would use some time away from talk of war. 

He walked back behind the bar and tabbed on the master’s office door, hearing the voices behind it pause before a “come in” sounded. 

Laxus opened the door to mixed emotions, but he didn’t want to waste anymore time, “Violet went back to your apartment,” he said, “You might want to go talk to her,” then with a sheepish glance at the master, “if you’re done here that is.” 

August was on his feet before Laxus finished speaking, “Did something happen?” 

Laxus glanced at the floor. It wasn’t his right to go around rattling off other people’s secrets. “There was a little confrontation with Natsu,” he said, then, after seeing the looks on both their faces, “nothing serious but...she went home.” 

“I’ll go right now.” August said, then, as if an afterthought turned to the master. 

“You don’t need my permission,” the old man reminded him. 

“Uh...right,” August nodded, turning to leave again, “Thanks.” 

And he was gone. 

Laxus lowered himself down into the recently vacated chair, letting out a deep sigh as he sunk into an unhealthy posture. 

“That bad is it?” the master asked. 

Laxus looked at his grandfather over the desk, then straightened. “It wasn’t that bad.” 

“You said she had a confrontation with Natsu.” 

“Okay maybe it’s a little bad.” he amended. “But it could be worse.” 

The master looked over him. Laxus knew that he was burning to know the answers to the questions he had given him, but he hadn’t received many. Even with a reading, the girl was far from an open book. 

Before either of them could speak again, there was another light knock on the door. 

“Come in.” 

This time it was Mira Jane, carrying a stack of papers. 

“You said that you wanted to go over all incoming job requests?” she asked. 

“Yes thank you,” the master nodded, setting them on my desk. 

She did as he asked and then left, closing the door behind her. 

“Do you know what you're going to do with her?” Laxus asked. 

The master’s eyes flicked over the job requests on the way to meet him, but they stopped along the way, a single brow razing. 

“I think I have an idea.”


	83. EIGHTY THREE

*Violet's POV*

When I came out of the shower, August was waiting in the living room. As soon as I opened the door I could feel the buzzing in his head. He was planning something, something big. And he intended to tell me about it. I assumed it had something to do with his most recent meeting with the master, and possibly his talk with Laxus too. 

I wasn’t in the mood for another long, and probably stressful conversation, but if August was this excited, I knew he would probably do most of the talking. I just had to be sure not to mention too much of what had happened on my end of things while he was indisposed. 

I wasn’t the best at guessing intentions, but I wasn’t an idiot. August wanted me to play nice with the other fairies. Especially Natsu. I didn’t want him trying to divide his attention between his own problems, and the ones that I’d caused earlier today. The less he knew about it, the better. And that went for my little run in the Laxus as well. 

“What’s up?” I called, taking a seat in the chair across from him. “Did it go well with the master?”

August narrowed his eyes, suspecting something. I realized for the first time that he must have noticed I’d left the guild hall, despite agreeing to wait for him. He must have realized something had happened. Or been told. 

“It was fine,” he said, testing the waters to see if he could get a reaction. He knew what I was reading there. I pretended not to notice, pushing for his story before he could ask for mine. 

“What did you talk about?” I asked. I’d been careful not to ask for details about his meetings with the master, only engaging when he was the one to bring it up. I knew that they were working to keep us a secret from the outside world, making the council think that we were normal mages, making Takashi think that we were still planning to eliminate our targets. 

August blinked, then relaxed. He must have known that I was just trying to distract him from asking why I’d left the guild hall. Perhaps he didn’t care. “It has to do with what Laxus talked to me about last night.” 

He seemed to be insinuating something, still asking to receive even though he appeared to be giving. Was this meant to be a hint that he knew Laxus and I had talked earlier that day? Wherever the conversion went now it would probably lead there...still. If I could convince him to talk first, he might get distracted, or at least give me time to come up with a way to weave the story so that it left out the problematic parts. 

“And what was that?” 

Now he knew for sure I was avoiding talking about myself. Rather than continue to fight it, he let out a sigh and shrugged, allowing himself to fall back against the couch. 

“Fairy Tail has offered to help us fight Justice Valkyrie.” he said. 

“What?!” He might as well have told me that Laxus liked to weave friendship bracelets or bake pastries in his free time. “I thought the plan was to lie low for a while.” 

“It is,” August agreed, “but we can’t keep this up forever, I mean eventually they’re going to realize we don’t plan to kill anyone.” 

In the back of my head I’d always known that was true. But I’d been working too hard just to survive each day, there hadn't been time to think about how we were going to get out of this in the long run. And even when I had, my thoughts had drifted to Topaz and Kaze, living alone, keeping to themselves. The idea that Fairy Tail could survive...or that August and I could survive with them. Well...there had been a reason I didn’t want to think too hard about what would happen when Takashi stopped swallowing our lies. 

“So you guys were...working out a plan?” 

August nodded. 

I tried to picture him there, sitting in the master’s office, talking strategy as he once did with me. In his element, all attention on him, yet still somehow...cold. Not himself. It made me feel a little better about all the attention he was getting from the master, to know that it was purely transactional. At least on August's side of things anyway. 

“We have to start with Takashi.” August said. 

I nodded slowly, agreeing now what had been brought up, despite the turning in my stomach at the mention of his name. 

“He’s the one that knows the most about us, not to mention the one that seems to be keeping us in cheek. If we can get rid of him first, we could buy a little time while they regroup, and then it’s time for the big guns.” 

“Which are?” 

“Well we didn’t get that far yet.” 

But I could tell how excited he was. To be thinking about it. To be talking about it, to have his mind wrapped around a problem again, just like he used to with jobs. 

And I wanted to feel the same. I wanted to get the same rush that he had. Or even better, the same rush that I used to get when we were called to receive an assignment, when I woke up in the middle of the night to take a life under cover of darkness. When Takashi awarded me for improved scores. 

But instead I felt a looming dread, the thought of Fairy Tail storming into one of the compounds, familiar faces in a familiar place that didn’t belong to them. The two halves of my life finally colliding, and tearing each other apart wherever the seems met. 

I knew of course, that Justice Valkyrie hadn't been a good place. But it was the only place I’d ever been until now. I didn’t want to return there, not really. But I knew that I could...if I wanted to. That it was still there, the same buildings and paths that had been my childhood, every square inch of it covered in memory, even if they weren't good ones. 

And it hadn’t all been bad. There had been August. And Takashi. And the feeling of being better than everyone that I still sometimes forgot was misguided. The way the people walked around the compound, like they belonged there. Like they belonged to the world because of it. Because it gave them a purpose. It gave me a purpose. 

And I knew it was wrong to miss it. 

And it didn’t change a thing. 

Justice Valkyrie was cold and calculating, focused on uniformity, and the job, on winning. But winning had felt so good. To walk back into the compound and give my debrief, to see the master’s half smile…

Fairy Tail was warm and chaotic and loving. But it was new, and unfamiliar. And down right confusing to me. And I knew that I was better off here in theory but...I had never had to question how I fit into the world before I’d arrived. I’d never had to face death, to accept and expect it, only for it to turn away like I wasn’t even worth it’s time. 

“Violet?” 

“Sorry,” I blinked, turning away from August. “Just tired I think.” it wasn’t a total lie. 

“Yeah okay,” August said. He knew I was avoiding him. He didn’t care, “You should sleep, I’ll see you in the morning, maybe you could help the master and I come up with some more ideas.” 

The thought sent a silver up my spine, but I simply gave a noncommittal “Maybe,” and headed for my room.


	84. EIGHTY FOUR

*Violet's POV*

It took a long time for sleep to claim me, but once it had, I passed from night to day dreamlessly, making the morning come a lot quicker than I may have liked. I’d gone to bed early by my standards, but still managed to sleep late. By the time I woke, the early morning sun was already casting shadows around my room through the thin curtains. 

I could sense August in the other room, calmly evaluating something while waiting for me to emerge. The heavy feel of magic in the air told me that he had his archive open, and I almost longed for the night where that had been the source of our biggest conflict, before I’d had to think about my own relevance in the world, or what it would mean to fight the organization that made me into what I was in the first place. 

I took a deep breath and got dressed, finally working up the courage to go meet August, and face the walk to the guild hall that would surely follow. By the time we were out the door and on the street below, the gears were already turning in my head as to how to approach Natsu. Or better yet, how to make an excuse to avoid him altogether. 

“Are you meeting with the master again today?” I asked, trying to sound conversational. 

“Not sure yet.” August shrugged, “Why? You wanna come with?” 

His cheerfulness only made me feel more guilty about my convection to avoid anything related to the master, but all I gave was a noncommittal shrug. 

“If you think it would help.” 

“Oh it would help tons,” August said, “You know Takashi better than me.” 

I wondered if he was thinking of the little fact that Takashi had asked me to be his number two. Or more pressingly the way that I had with held that from him. I wasn’t brave enough to ask. 

“We could just go in there and stall,” August offered, and I noticed his light hearted tone being peeled back to reveal something more important. “If you’re trying to avoid anyone.” 

His insinuation was too on the nose to be a lucky guess. “What makes you think I’m avoiding someone?” 

August was quiet for a moment, debating something in his head. 

“You might as well tell me,” I said. I already had an idea anyway. 

“Laxus told me you had a little run in with Natsu.” August sighed. 

I knew it. 

“He didn’t go into details,” August amended quickly, “and I was going to ask you about it last night but…” 

“I distracted you.” I finished. 

“Yeah,” August nodded, “You’re good at that.” 

We walked a few more steps. I hadn’t been looking forward to bringing Natsu up, but now that it was mostly out in the open, It felt a little good. 

“I yelled at him a bit.” I said, “he was…” he hadn’t really been doing anything. Nothing that he hadn’t done before anyway. “I was just overwhelmed.” 

“I’m sure it’s not a big deal.” August assured me, “he’d been supper into forgive and forget as far as I’ve seen.” 

“It was different this time.” I said, “I think I...I actually hurt him.” 

August blinked. 

“He reacted differently is all,” I said, “he was upset, more than before. More even than when…” well no need to explain that. 

“Well you don’t have to solve it right away,” August said, though I could tell he didn’t really believe that. There were alarms sounding in his head at the thought of me and Natsu’s relationship falling apart. Not that it had been the strongest thing ever in the first place. “I’m sure you can work it out,” he added, though I knew he was only reassuring himself. And then another thought came to him. It was one that I had read before, but this time it slid into this head so naturally I could almost forget that it had only been his last resort before. The desire for help. For guidance. He was going to go to the master with my problems again. 

Before I could think of a way to convince him not to, I saw that we had arrived at the guild hall. August opened the door for me, allowing me to pass inside in front of him. The first thing I did was scan the room for that unmistakable pink head. But to my confusion, and relief, Natsu was nowhere to be seen. 

August stopped in beside me, scanning the room in much the same way I had, but pulling away when he came up with nothing. The master was also absent from his usual post at the bar. 

August hesitated for a second, glancing around the room again. This time his eyes, and attention settled on a similar table. The same one I had fled from the day before, this time without Natsu and Happy. 

Before I could protest he walked over to it, I placed my eyes firmly on the floor and followed meekly, preparing for an awkward situation. I felt each of the fairies notice our approach, looking up with mixed feelings, though most of them were warm. 

“Mind if we join you?” August asked. 

His voice was confident, but at the last moment I felt his resolve waver. 

Lucy smiled at us “Of course,” she said, “You don’t have to ask.” 

August shrugged and took a seat. Despite, her words I knew he would still ask in the future. 

I sat down next to him, blocking myself off from the rest of the group. I could feel their eyes on me from time to time, wondering why I had come. Wondering If August knew what had happened the day before. It could be that he had bought us here to try and make my talk to them, but it was more likely that they were simply the only people that had yet to arrive who really knew us. 

The fairies continued a casual conversation about a restaurant somewhere in town. Their aura was inviting, but not forceful, and it wasn’t hard to tell that August was distracted. 

Every time the door opened he would look over at it, turning back to the others in disappointment when it turned out to Laki or Nab. I kept my eyes on the table in front of us, paying just enough attention to the conversation that I wouldn't make a fool of myself if they tried to draw me into it. 

August may be looking for Laxus, or even the master. But I knew that whether I liked it or not, I was waiting for Natsu, and eventually he would arrive, and I would have to come up with something to say to him. 

After only a few minutes of distracted conversation, the door opened again, and I felt August's stomach turn with anticipation. I turned to look at the door, and saw not one, but two of the people that I’d been hoping wouldn't arrive. Laxus and Natsu waited in the doorway, looking around the guild hall like they were sniffing out their next meal. 

I felt Natsu’s eyes move over me, as if barely registering that I was there at all. But Laxus’s gaze lingered, sending a cold shiver down my spine. I felt my mouth go dry as they walked farther into the guild hall. Both August and I prepared for their approach, August going so far as to swing a leg out from the bench in preparation to stand. 

But their next steps took them in another direction, and without another look towards us, both men walked to the bar, and then behind it, going together into what I could only assume was the master’s office. 

I knew I wasn’t the only one that felt cold. 

I knew it was a little ridiculous to immediately assume they were talking about me, but...I didn’t like the idea of the three figures that I was the most uncomfortable around having a little powwow where I was even so much as mentioned, much less discussed. 

I turned back to the table to see that the other’s light hearted chatter had stopped, and they were all staring after Natsu too. Perhaps they had been expecting them to join us just as much as August and I had. Before anyone could say anything, or even acknowledge that it was strange, Happy appeared from the crowd and landed on the table, vanishing his wings as he looked around. 

I did my best to melt into August's side, or the bench below me. Or both. 

“What was that all about Happy?” Lucy asked. 

The cat’s eyes landed on me for the briefest of moments before he turned to the others again, “Laxus was waiting for us on the way here,” he shrugged. 

“What for?” Grey asked. His tone was casual as well, but it didn’t quite match the curiosity I knew he was feeling. 

“Natsu thought he wanted a fight,” Happy said, generating a chorus of what seemed like exasperation. 

“Of course he did…” 

“What did Laxus really want?” 

“He said that the master had a job for him.” Happy said. 

“Again?” asked Grey. 

It took me a while to realize what was strange about this. Natsu was a strong member of the guild, it only made sense that he would be assigned lots of...but Fairy Tail didn’t assign things, I reminded myself. The wizards here were allowed to choose their own work. 

Again there were hints of eyes on me, but I had no idea what kind of job the Master would have given him, not to mention why Laxus would be the one to break the news. 

“They wanted to talk to the master about something,” Happy said, “it seemed important, so I stayed out of it.” 

The words more or less fell on deaf ears. Everyone had run off into their own little corner of their consciousness, thinking through what the master’s reasons where. 

I found myself doing the same, but I had a feeling I knew what the outcome would be. We all looked up when we heard a door open and close behind the bar. A moment later, Laxus, Natsu and the master emerged, looking grim, but feeling determined. 

Before they'd even made it to the bar, I felt three sets of eyes on me, a pull, a request.

I stood from my seat. 

“Violet?” August stood with me, but I’d already started making my way to the bar. I wasn’t something to be gawked at, to be talked about behind closed doors. I wasn’t just going to wait around for their inevitable invitation. 

I approached the three men as confidently as I could, taking in the atmosphere, and preparing for a conversation. Natsu and Laxus both seemed confused, and a little taken back that I’d been the one to come to them. 

The Master, as always, was harder to read, but if I didn’t know any better I would say that he held the same Fairy Tail amusement that I had grown to hate. 

“I was just going to call for you.” he smiled. 

“I gathered that,” I said, risking a glance over at Natsu before focusing on the Master’s forehead. I heard August finally catch up behind us, and felt the attention of the fairies I’d left behind just beyond them, but did my best to give them no attention. 

“Natsu was specifically requested for a job,” the master said, “it happens sometimes after the grand magic games.” 

I forced myself not to glance at Natsu. 

“I believe that it’s a job that could be greatly improved by using your skills.” he added, offering the flier. 

I took it, careful not to let my hands touch his. I felt August lean into read over my shoulder. It seemed to be from a rich family in Onibus. Their son was a fan of Natsu, and had nightmares. I stared at the paper for a moment, wondering if this was meant to be a joke, before realizing that the master had offered to me because Silvering could help, not because of my recent sleepless nights. I took a deep breath and shoved the paper behind me for August to finish. 

“It’s your choice.” the master assured me. 

I noticed Natsu start to rock back and forth on his heels unconsciously. 

“But it’s also good money.” 

August stepped forward and handed the job flier back to the master. 

“I still have to wait here for Takashi.” he said, “he expects me too-” 

“I know.” I said. If I agreed to this, it would be my and Natsu alone. But somehow the thought of it was a lot less terrifying than I’d thought it might be. 

I did a quick read of Natsu, still not looking at him. He was antsy, ready to head out immediately, and, desperately trying to hide the fact that he wanted me to come. 

I took a deep breath. This was clearly the master’s final push to mend what he thought was a potentially good relationship. The job would be the determinant in whether or not it was worth it to try and keep forcing Natsu and I together. 

On one hand, it would be awkward, and hard and exposing. On the other….regardless of if we came back as friends, the others would leave me alone about it.

I took a deep breath, as if preparing to sign my own death warrant. 

“I’ll do it.”


	85. EIGHTY FIVE

*Violet's POV*

I let out a sigh as I shut the apartment door behind me, my backpack heavy on my shoulders. I’d said my goodbyes to August at the guild hall. As always, he was sad to see my go, but also happy that it was with Natsu. Not to mention chomping at the bit to get in with the master again. 

Natsu and I had stiffly agreed to meet at the train station in an hour, and then we had parted ways, giving me a moment of alone time before what would be several days of Natsu. 

I closed the door carefully and started the walk to the train station, already knowing that I would be late. As usual, things were off to a great start. I knew at least, that Natsu would be all but incapacitated on the train, giving me a little bit of time to think before he had the chance to talk to me. Then again...he hadn’t made much of an attempt at a conversation back at the guild hall. Perhaps this was all just the final nail in the coffin that I had built outside the bathroom the day before. Perhaps it was already too late, and I had finally convinced him to give up on trying to befriend me. Even though it had been something I'd thought I was hoping for, the thought of it now made me feel cold and hollow inside. 

Either way, I had agreed to go on this job. There was no backing out now. I traced my way through Magnolia and to the train station, forcing myself to remain calm. If anything, this job more closely resembled the one’s that I’d had back before coming to Fairy Tail. Just me and one other person, rather than a big clunky group. We would be in and out. Back to Fairy Tail in time to hear August's new great plan on how to further mess things up with Takashi and the rest of Justice Valkyrie. 

I took a deep breath as I hopped up the stairs and into the train station, trying to take comfort in the way that my backpack bumped against me every time I took a step. That at least was solid, real. 

Natsu would be waiting for me on the platform. It wasn’t a site I was looking forward to. But I knew that as the train was scheduled to leave in only a few minutes, there wouldn't be enough time for any meaningful conversation before motion sickness overtook him. That would give me a little bit of time to work out what to do. Not that time was the thing that I needed right now…

I entered the main terminal and was greeted with the familiar feeling of a train station. It felt like this at least, though I had never been here before coming for Fairy Tail, had also been a part of my old life. Every town, a train station, another job, in and out, never staying long enough to see anything other than the inside of train cars and the empty streets at night. I wondered if I could capture that feeling again, if August and I would ever get the chance to do jobs without Fairy babysitters, or if the feeling of our old jobs, like so many other things, was lost to me, sentenced to fade from memory. 

“Violet!” 

I froze at the sound of the voice, waiting as my magic reached out to read it’s owner. Before I could think of a response Natsu appeared at my side, pulling out of the crowd from the same direction that I had just come. 

“Got caught up at the ticket booth.” he said, “Sorry to keep you waiting.” 

I must have just missed him. Perhaps I should have paid better attention, tried to meet him earlier. Thought...he didn’t seem to be upset about it. In fact, he didn’t seem to be upset about anything. It was as though our confrontation the day before had never happened. As thought he had put it behind him already or…

I concentrated harder. No. The wall of excitement and contentment that he felt was strong, and not entirely fabricated. But it was hiding something. Something heavier, but in too deep for me to get a good understanding of. 

If Natsu noticed my silence he didn’t react to it. 

“We should go,” he said, “Try to get window seats.” he shivered, and I felt the same sensation in myself. It wouldn't be as intense, but if I was near him while he was miserable...well this wasn’t going to be a good ride for either of us. 

“Lead the way,” I said, feeling with him the wave of nausea as he looked at the train for the first time. 

A little reluctantly, he started walking forward. I tagged along, trying to look natural. He easily found an empty area near the front of the car. There weren’t that many people traveling at this time of day. Natsu tucked his backpack under his seat, then settled down, immediately beginning to deflate into the fabric even though the train had yet to move. 

I took the spot across from him, dubious that the seats were going to be needed for a ride in the middle of a week day. I tucked my legs under me and prepared for an unpleasant ride. A few minutes later, the train lurched forward, and Natsu turned a greenish color. “Just tell me when we make it to Omnibus.” he groaned. 

“You can count on me,” I sighed, placing my cheek against the rough material of the seat and glancing at out the window as the train left the station. I told myself that this would be over quickly. And even better, when I got back, August would have had time to better work out a plan with the master, meaning that I would have no part in plotting Takashi’s downfall. I would rather face Natsu a million more times than have to explain myself to the master. Especially now that I knew from Laxus the types of questions that he wanted to ask. A silver went down my spine at the memory of our conversation and then...at what he’d told me right before returning to the guild hall. “What you told me today…” he’d said. “You should tell Natsu.” 

I glanced at Natsu now, but my magic did nothing but pull a dizzy feeling into my head. This job would be a good opportunity for that….if it was what I wanted. 

I took a deep breath and leaned back against the seat, pulling away from the window as Magnolia disappeared from view. The weight of future conversions with Natsu mixed with second hand motion sickness, giving me the urge to lay on the floor and dry heave. I shifted in my seat, trying to find a more comfortable position, and caught sight of silver hair in the seat diagonal from me. I felt my heart leap even as my stomach dropped into my shoes. 

“Takashi?”


	86. EIGHTY SIX

*Violet's POV*

I reached up to rub at my eyes, hardly able to believe what I was seeing. It really was him! Takashi was just sitting there, a few feet away from me. The closest we’d been since our job together. Since he’d given August the order to kill Natsu. 

His face was turned away from me, but I would recognize him anywhere, silver hair, the blue sash coming from his shoulder, the symbol of his rank. Even the bottom of his guild mark, peeking out from under his sleeve. The skin under my unnecessary bandage seemed to burn. My mark calling out to his, seeking out its own. 

But…

We weren't supposed to be friends anymore. Not even allies. Takashi was the one thing that I should be the most afraid of right now, even more so than being caught by the magic council, who would only throw us in prison. If Takashi found out why I hadn’t killed Natsu, what August was planning to do to him even as we sat there...if it would be game over for all of us. 

He was my enemy. 

Natsu was my friend. 

The very idea of it felt so wrong. To be safer with a target than with my own commanding officer. With the boy that had taught me everything I knew about magic and fighting and on the right way to live. To think. To be. 

My head told me that he was dangerous. That I should get Natsu’s attention and find a way to slip away as fast as I could. The necklace under my shirt felt cold against my chest, a reminder of another way out, to call Topaz and Kaze for help. But…

My heart wanted to run over there and throw myself into his arms like I had so many times before. To feel safe there, as I had after every job and subsequent return. Back when I thought there always would be a return. That every job would end and I would come back home, to the barracks and training yards that had made up my world until only a few short weeks ago. 

I glanced at Natsu, draped over the opposite seat and groaning quietly. He was too far gone to notice that my attention had sifted. Would he even notice if I left? He wouldn't be able to stop me. 

Before I could make up my mind about what to do, the decision was made for me. I felt a spike of attention from Takashi’s direction, and looked up to find him staring right at me. 

I let out a smile that I hoped looked natural. 

He smiled back, amused and confronted, but not, I realized, surprised. He must have already known I was here. Good thing I hadn’t tried to slip out unnoticed. 

Takashi moved his eyes towards Natsu, through I doubted that he could see much of him from that angle. 

He filled himself with a disgust that was only a little fabricated, then rolled his eyes and smiled wider. 

My first instinct was to become angry, to scold him for mocking someone’s suffering, but I stopped myself just in the nick of time. The sounds Natsu was making were a little ridiculous. I looked back to Takashi with a girlish giggle. The sound caused Natsu to stiffen, revealing that he hadn’t been as out of it as I’d hoped. 

“Is something wrong?” 

I glanced at him only to look back at Takashi. Through his haze of motion sickness I felt alarm bells ringing in his head. He knew we were in danger. But it wasn’t the type of thing that could be fixed with a fist. This one was up to me. Up to my lies. And not even August could help me this time. 

Before I could think of a response, Takashi winked, then stood from his seat, making my stomach roll almost as hard as Natsu’s. Takashi appeared in the aisle next to me, bracing his whole arm across the top of my seat as if for balance. I knew that even without it, his posture would be impeccable. 

Natsu’s eyes widened as he sat up almost normally. For the moment at least, Takashi’s presence was overpowering the motion sickness, quickly becoming the most dangerous thing in the room. Conversely, I felt more and more like I was going to be sick. 

“It’s a crazy coincidence meeting you here,” Takashi flashed a bright smile. 

Natsu was glaring at him in a way that was going to be hard to explain. I wished there was some way to kick him, try and come up with a plan. 

“You might not remember me,” Takashi said, turning to Natsu, “I visited a few weeks back, one of Violet’s friends,” on the word friends, he turned back to me, flashing his eyes mischievously. I felt my cheeks grow hot. Now was not the time. 

“Oh yeah…” Natsu said, with a voice that was shaking only partially because of motion sickness. “I think I remember you-” 

“Where are you guys off to?” Takashi asked, turning to me and ignoring Natsu completely. Well that might be for the best. 

“Omnibus.” I said, “Natsu was requested specifically, and they need my skill set so, off we go,” I tried to smile, but the look in Takashi’s eyes suddenly changed. I reached inside and found out why. Anticipation, pride, then, pity, but for the first time it wasn’t for me. It was for Natsu. He thought I was going to kill him. 

I ground my hand into the fabric of the bus seat, disturbing the scars on my palm. If I did want to do him in, this would be the perfect opportunity. We would probably be put in the same room, I could slit his throat in his sleep, then blame the family who summoned him there. Even if the council got involved, I would have no blame. If I did it the first night, there would be time for an investigation before I was even meant to return to the guild hall. Or even better, I kill him the last night and hide the body, return to the guild claiming that we have been attacked along the way. 

It would be so clean... except... I hadn't been planning to kill him. I wasn’t going to kill him. So how would I explain it when he was still alive in a few days? 

“It’s really great to see you both again,” Takashi said, and I knew that he was happy, but more of the prospect of me killing Natsu without strict orders like he’d given last time. “I’m off to Oshibana. Got some business there.” 

“What kind of business?” Natsu asked. 

We both stared at him. It had been an instinct response, smoothing to fill space. I could tell he regretted speaking at all. 

Takashi turned away from him in disgust. “If it’s not any trouble,” he said, “I wouldn't mind talking to you alone for a time Violet.” 

The way he said my name sent a shiver down my spine, but I nodded stiffly. “Of course!” I was supposed to be happy about it. 

Natsu stared at me, a question. He would try and take care of the problem if I didn’t want to go. But we were surrounded by people. Word would get back to the master if we attacked him now. Besides, as things where, I heavily doubted that Natsu could put up much of a fight. 

I stood carefully, waiting for Takashi to turn his back before placing my hand on Natsu’s exposed shoulder. Relaxation. Acceptance determination. A message. I’ll be fine.

“Be back in a few,” I called, pulling my hand away just in time for Takashi to turn and smile at me. “Try and hang in there.” 

I could tell that Natsu had half a mind to follow us, but after a moment's consideration he nodded and slumped back against the seat. “Yeah, see you soon.” 

And then I turned and followed Takashi toward the other end of the car, trying to take a deep breath in preparation for what could be the most important lie of my life.


	87. EIGHTY SEVEN

*Violet's POV*

I felt Natsu’s presence slowly fade from my reach as Takashi placed his hand on the door at the end of the car and pulled it open, letting in a rush of wind from the gap between them. A few of the passengers looked up at us, but all of them seemed disinterested. Perhaps they assumed we knew what we were doing. Perhaps they simply didn’t care. 

I stepped out onto the windy platform and closed the door behind us. I wasn’t sure that this was exactly allowed, but I knew better than to question Takashi. 

“Isn’t it a little loud out here?” I yelled over the wind. 

“Yeah,” he called, “but we’re not at our final stop just yet.” he reached into his collar and pulled out a key, fighting it into the door of the car in front of us. He yanked it open and I ducked inside, blinking against the darkness as I realized that we had passed into a cargo area. 

Takashi closed the door behind him and reached into his pocket, pulling out a glow lacrama and throwing it to the ground. There I saw what could only be described as a camp, a backpack, some food and water and...a familiar looking vanilla folder. 

“Are you on a job right now?” I asked, starting to wish I had come up with an excuse to not follow him. 

“Why else would I be here?” he asked, shoving the key back into his shirt, “but don’t worry,” he said, “I’m not gonna do anything until you and your target get off.” 

He meant to be reassuring, and if I hadn’t been lying to him about planning to kill Natsu, then it would have been. Even though having the possibility of being tied to two disappearances could prove a little problematic. 

“So,” he said, “How’d you convince them to let you come all the way out here with him?” Takashi asked, taking a seat on the floor near his things. 

So he planned for this to be a long talk. I took a deep breath and sat across from him, trying to get myself in the debrief mindset that had once been a coping mechanism for stressful conversations, now turned to a way to hide what was really going on. 

“I didn’t really have to do much convincing,” I said, “The job came in and asked for Natsu, and they thought I could be useful.” to create at least a little proof I reached into my pocket and pulled out the job flier, offering it to him, and trying to look natural in case he looked up at me while reading. 

“Looks like luck is on your side.” he smiled, “have to make up for last time.” 

“Yeah...” 

“Is that how you’re going to explain it?” Takashi asked. 

“Sorry?” 

“The kill, are you going to blame it on the same masked man that attacked you last time.” 

“Oh, yeah of course.” it would be a logical course of action. “Might be a little suspicious that I was with him both times, but-” I shrugged, “Natsu hasn’t been out much since then, so it can still work, and I’ll have August to back me up two of course.” 

“I’ve been meaning to talk to him,” Takashi said, “The master has made an important request.” 

My mouth went dry. “Oh yeah?” 

“Oh don’t worry,” Takashi flashed a smile that would have made me blush a few months ago, “it’s a good thing.” 

I tried to smile back, but even I could tell that it was forced. 

“What’s wrong?” he asked. 

“Nothing,” I said quickly, “Still a little off after feeling Natsu’s stupid motion sickness for so long.” 

It was probably true. 

Takashi scooted a little closer to me. His eyes reflected the lacrama below us, glinting, almost intimately in the dark. I knew that, if this had happened even a few weeks ago, I would be practically swooning right now, desperate for his attention, and in a place that felt so alone… so detached from the rest of the world. 

But we were enemies now. Even as we spoke, August was coming up with a way to destroy him. And for what? He wasn’t the one that asked us to kill them. He wasn’t the master. Maybe...if things had been different, if he had come to Fairy Tail with us, and seen what it was like in the outside world. Would he still be our ally? My friend? Could there still be a chance for something more? 

“Are you sure it’s just the motion sickness?” 

I looked away from him, from those luminous blue eyes, using my hair to shield me again. I had already tipped him off, and if he wasn’t going to let it go...better to give him a little bit of the truth then run the risk of him discovering all of it. 

I braced for the humiliation, knowing full well that I had brought it upon myself. 

“I’m scared of facing him is all.” Takashi pulled back, surprised, but not at the information exactly...but that I had said it? Was he expecting me to not tell him? “After I failed last time,” I said, “I mean….what if it goes wrong again.” 

There was a turning in my stomach now, but not because of the prospect of losing another fight. No, the battle that I was anticipating to have with Natsu now wasn’t physical. But it scared me more. Almost more than Takashi did. 

“Hey,” Takashi reached into my lap and pulled up my hands. His touch was warm, almost tender, but it sent a shiver up my spine. There was something in his head then, that I couldn’t be sure if the feeling was related to me or just a passing thought...something deep and heavy. But I couldn't concern myself with looking into it when he could read me. I had been lying with my words before, with my body. Now I would have to lie with my soul. 

“It’s an easy job,” Takashi said, “just wait until he’s asleep and then take care of it. There won’t even be a fight.”

“You’re right,” I said, “There’s nothing to worry about.” I smiled, relaxing, as if he had reassured me. 

“Unless…” Takashi eyes flicked up to my face, trapping me under his gaze, “There’s another reason you don't want to kill him.” 

Not even my greatest effort could stop my heart from dropping like a stone. 

Takashi smiled sadly, but there was no anger, just a kind of satisfaction, like he was proud to be the one to uncover my darkest secrets. 

“It’s nothing to worry about.” he pulled his hands away, almost making me want to sob with relief. “A lot of people your age have this kind of problem, but you can get past that.” and he really did believe it. He really did want me to succeed.

“Once you take care of Natsu, the feeling will die with him, and things can go back to normal.” 

And in a way, he was still right. If I killed Natsu on this trip...I could blame Takashi or whoever I wanted from Justice Valkyrie, tell August that I had changed my mind, and then we could take care of the rest before they knew what hit them, leave Fairy Tail forever. And life would be structured again. Normal. No more awkward tea parties with Erza, no more feeling Grey’s eyes on my scars every time I turned my back. 

And we would return home with honor. With Valor. 

But…

And now I really did start to cry. 

It wouldn't be right. 

Takashi let out a breath of a laugh. It radiated a comforting, familiar aura. “It’s alright.” he said, “I tell you what, once you’re done I’ll be waiting for you.” 

“It’s going to be awhile before we get the chance to take care of the rest of them.” I said. 

Takashi hesitated, sensing a misunderstanding, “no, I mean…” he took a deep breath, “I’ll be waiting for you back at Magnolia.” 

“Oh.” 

The panic that I’d been fighting since I’d first seen Takashi broke through all the walls in my head. 

“I meant to send another message, but with this job I didn’t get the chance, so I thought I’d just surprise you.” 

“That's-that’s great!” 

Takashi smiled, to preoccupied in relishing the good news to pay much attention to me. 

Before I could think of anything else to say, I heard the familiar grinding of the brakes below us, the beginning of a stop as the train slid into the station. “That will be Omnibus,” Takashi said. 

“Oh!” I stood, thanking the stars that I would be spared even another second in that dark train car. “I better go get Natsu, the idiot probably doesn't know which way is up right now.” 

“Have fun,” Takashi said, with a smirk that I used to think was endearing. 

“I always do,” I said, then swung open the door and stepped out of the car, working hard to control my breathing.


	88. EIGHTY EIGHT

*Violet's POV*

By the time I managed to make it back into our car, the train had come to a full stop. I barely made it back to my seat before the doors opened, giving me only a little bit of time to get Natsu coherent enough to walk out into the station. 

As expected, he was laying on the seat, still groaning even now that the train had stopped. I felt a little pang of guilt for leaving him alone like this, but I knew it hadn’t really been much of a choice. When Takashi told you to do something you did it. 

“Natsu,” I reached forward and carefully tapped a shoulder, careful not to allow for any contact. He managed a grunt, but otherwise didn’t respond. If we didn’t move quickly, the train doors were going to close again, keeping us trapped inside, sending us on to Oshibana. With Takashi. 

I took a deep breath, knowing I was probably going to regret this, and then placed my hands on the either side of Natsu's head, sucking out as much of the dizziness as I could while keeping myself up right. 

The effect was immediate. For the first time since we boarded the train, Natsu sat up properly, still a little dazed. I took slow breaths as I tried to keep my balance, slowly pulling Natsu up by his sleeve. “Time to go.” I said. 

“He blinked stupidly as he stood, and I let go of his shirt as he started to walk unsteadily toward the door. “You left,” he said, “with Tokeshu…” 

“Takashi,” I corrected, “I’ll tell you all about it later.” 

He was still distracted, but this seemed to satisfy him, and we made it out onto the platform just in time for the train doors to close behind us in preparation to move on to Oshibana, and eventually Crocus. 

Now that we were farther from the train, Natsu was starting to perk up, the source of his distress being gone. I, on the other hand, reflected no such effects. I’d separated the sickness from the source when I’d taken it from him, and it would be a while before it faded naturally. Maybe it would have been better to just drag him out of there. 

Natsu led the way out of the station, being the one that was more familiar with it, but I was finding it harder and harder to keep up, teetering dangerously on the stairs. My stomach seemed to turn slowly and heavily, but my heart had yet to recover from Takashi’s “surprise” only a few seconds before. He was coming to Magnolia. He would be there when we got back. 

It didn’t take Natsu too long to notice I was lagging behind. He lingered at the top of the stair for a few seconds, before descending them all together to meet me. “You took it didn’t you?” 

There was a kind of anger there, but gentle? Exasperation maybe. 

“You wouldn't move.” 

“Lucy just drags me out…” Natsu noted, scratching the back of his head. 

“Lucy is scary…” I said, agreeing with his feelings rather than his words, I must have forgotten to separate them. 

“You sure you're alright?” Natsu said, stepping closer still, “It should have fade-” 

“I’m fine.” I said, pulling away from him, the sooner I got out of the train station the sooner we could be away from all these people. Fresh air was supposed to help right? I’d never been motion sick before. 

I continued walking forward, trying not to focus on the way Natsu was trailing behind me, watching carefully as if he expected me to hit the floor at any moment. 

The goal of making it out of the train station was the only thing that I could focus on for the moment. Even if fresh air couldn't help my rapid breathing, the fact that I had been ordered to kill Natsu again. I had a lacrama to contact Topaz, but nothing that could connect me to August. Nothing that could help me warn him, or the rest of Fairy Tail of Takashi’s arrival. No way to ask for help. If I came back with Natsu this time, our cover would be blown for sure. Takashi already knew that I didn’t want to kill him. What would he do if I failed a second time? 

Because it was as Takashi had said. This was the perfect opportunity. The perfect opportunity to take back control of the life that Natsu had bought for Fairy Tail that day in the woods. Everything could go back to normal...if I wanted. All I had to do was do what I was good at, and follow orders. 

I finally made it out of the building and onto a cute cobblestone road, but I barely had time to take it in before I ran around the back of the train station, I keeled in the bushes and began to throw up everything that was in my stomach. I heard Natsu's approach, but didn’t have the time to feel embarrassed that he would see. 

Finally, everything that I had was ejected, and I rose to my feet unsteadily, feeling a little bit better now that I’d gotten everything out of my system. I turned to face Natsu, expecting him to be looking down at me in disgust, but instead I saw that his back was turned, watching the way he had come as if some kind of look out, and still, always that burning compassion. It almost made me want to cry again. 

I walked to where he could see me, not daring to look at him. 

“Next time you want to take something from me,” he said, “ask first.” 

I could have pointed out that he hadn’t really been in a mood to say much of anything, but I nodded anyway. 

“Well,” he glanced at me only to look away again. I noticed it was a conscious gesture. Was it because he knew I didn’t like making eye contact? “We should probably get going, Gramps told them we’d be there at-” 

“You’re not going to ask me about Takashi?” 

He blinked once, turning to me again. “Did you...want me to?” 

I had been expecting him to. I had been preparing too. It would just become the capstone on the long list of “times Violet messed up.” except this time it really was going to get us all killed. 

“You can tell me if you want,” Natsu said, though he already assumed I didn’t. “But the way I see it it’s none of my business.” coming from someone else it might have been cold, but not from him. This was an assurance that I didn’t have to talk about it. That I didn’t have to talk about anything. But he was wrong. This was his business. This was as important as it got. “Besides,” he said, “we have a job to do.” 

I opened my mouth only to close it again. Even as we spoke, Takashi was on a train, preparing to kill yet another stranger, and then he would turn around, and help August plan to kill my friends. And I needed to tell Natsu. I needed to come up with a way to fix it. Instead, I nodded, and pulled out the job flier. 

“Then let’s get going.”


	89. EIGHTY NINE

*Violet's POV*

I’d thought that Topaz’s house was huge, but this one made it seem normal. I’d been in houses like this for jobs before, of course. But it was one thing to see them at night, to look at them like boxes to break into. To enter it as a guest, as someone who had been specifically invited, was another thing entirely. 

The gardens were buzzing with butterflies and even a gardener, who waved and smiled as we walked by. The house ahead of us was three stories, seemed to extend in all directions like the wings of a drunk hospital. 

Natsu and I climbed onto the porch slowly, both of us still feeling some of the after effects of the train ride. The double doors before us were almost the size as the ones that adorned the guild hall, and they swung open as if by their own accord before we got the chance to knock.

A short man in a suite appeared in the entry, a butler I assumed, though I had never really seen one up close before. In my old line of work they had been something to be avoided at all costs, not something to be welcomed by. But Natsu had no such issue. He knew what he was doing. 

“We’re the wizards requested from Fairy Tail.” he said. 

The butler looked at me and I turned my arm to show my mark, then offered him the job flyer.

He looked over it carefully before nodding. “Right this way.” 

Natsu and I glanced at each other before following him inside. The entryway was beautiful, white marble and large vases and colorful flowers. 

“I will show you to your room first,” he said, “and then you will meet with the lady of the house.” 

His words echoed through the room around us, especially as he led us up the grand staircase. The professionalism he displayed was unfamiliar to me. I felt suddenly inadequate, as if we were somehow under qualified, or at the very least under dressed. But Natsu didn’t seem to be having any second thoughts, and we had been calling her to work after all. Perhaps this was normal for wizarding work, where looking like you belonged somewhere wasn’t really a priority. 

The butler led us down one of the halls and to another set of stairs that looked a little worse for wear. I assumed that they were probably used for staff only, and had my suspicions confirmed when we reached the top, revealing an attic like area with different rooms along it, like some kind of dormitory. 

The room he led us to was similar to the one we had stayed in at Topaz’s place, empty except for a low table and stack of pillows on top of soft looking tatami. 

Natsu dropped his backpack in the corner, and I did the same, then the butler turned and led us out of the room again, all the time not saying a word. I noticed now that this made Natsu a little bit uncomfortable, but not because there was any danger, just because he was unused to it. It was at least a little comforting to know that I wasn’t the only one who was slightly perplexed by high society life, despite both of us brushing past it on jobs several times before. 

After dumping our bags we were led back the way we’d come, then ushered into something that I was pretty sure was called a drawing room. There were a handful of comfortable looking chairs and sofas, all draped in crochet blankets that I was pretty sure where only meant to be decorative. Nestled among them as a middle aged woman in an expensive looking dress. 

The butler gave a little bow, “These are the Fairy Tail wizards that you have been expecting M’lady.” 

“Thank you,” the woman nodded, and I felt her eyes slide over us carefully. “You may leave us.” 

“As you wish.” and with another bow he was gone, leaving Natsu and I to stand awkwardly in the doorway. 

“Please sit,” the woman gestured to a sofa across from her, and we moved in, preparing for a complex conversation. 

It was Natsu who spoke first, knowing that I was still a little unfamiliar with interacting with clients. “You’re the one that sent the request?” then, a reach into memory, “Sophia Tellamen?” 

“You can call me Sophie.” 

Maybe she wasn’t as uptight as she seemed. 

“You’re Natsu I presume,” she said, receiving a nod, “and you are…” 

Her smile was polite, but it put Natsu on high alert, ready to jump to the rescue in case I choked. 

“I’m Violet.” I said carefully, “I came because my abilities are well suited for your...situation.” 

The woman nodded slowly, accepting me quicker than I’d expected, “that’s wonderful, thank you.” 

Natsu relaxed, knowing that I was able to at least talk normally. I took a deep breath and spoke again, taking lead in the conversation. “You said in the request that your son has been having nightmares.” I said, “and you asked for Natsu because…” how was I meant to word that? 

“He is a fan of sorts yes,” Sophie said. I noticed that she had taken no offense. Perhaps she wasn’t as bad as I’d first feared. “We were able to see the grand magic games this past year, and he has grown quite fond of the guild, of Natsu in particular.” She was slightly embarrassed, but kind. I could feel the love for her son everytime she so much as thought about him. It was a little distracting. 

“He’s been to a few doctors, but none of them have been able to help him sleep.” Sophie said, “I’ll admit, this is a bit of a last ditch effort, so there’s no harm if it turns out you can’t help. I must say I wasn’t expecting that there would be anyone with abilities in that area. What did you say your magic was again?” 

“Uh…”

“Sophie!” there was the sound of footsteps, and then the door opened. A little boy rushed in, beaming, and threw himself into his mother’s skirt. A moment later the butler appeared in the open door way. 

“My apologies Ma'am.” he said, stepping in further, “he knew that the wizards where here and-” 

“It’s not a problem,” Sophie said as the boy separated himself from her. Immediately, adoration. I noticed his eyes were fixed on Natsu. Reading children was always a little different than reading adults. They tended to wear more things on their sleeves. I assumed that it was because they had yet to encounter any feelings that they would be better off to hide. Even if it weren’t for my magic, I would have been able to tell that the kid was absolutely chomping at the bit for the chance to talk to him. 

I saw Sophie glance at her son, and then at me, she took a deep breath, making a decision. “How about this,” she said, her tone was meant for her son, but the words were for all of us, “if it’s okay with Natsu, the two of you can go get acquainted while I finish talking with his friend.” 

The boy whirled around to face her, bouncing with enough manic energy that it was starting to make me jittery. “For real?” 

Natsu glanced at me, and I nodded a little. I would much rather stay in this calm drawing room then go off to try and entertain some child. And talking to a stranger would be much easier without Natsu’s presence to distract me. It was the perfect turn of events. 

“Looks like that’s our cue to leave,” Natsu said, standing. 

As soon as he heard his voice the boy turn around yet again, running to his side. “Can I show you my room?” 

“Sure!” Natsu surged. “Show me whatever you want.” 

The boy began to clap and squeal as Natsu and I exchanged a glance. “See you soon,” he assured me. 

I nodded, and turned to watch them go, only looking away when the butler shut the door behind them, leaving me alone with our client.


	90. NINETY

*Violet's POV*

I found myself taking in a breath of relief once Natsu was out of the range of my magic. I knew that I wasn’t exactly the most trained in handling clients alone, but now that he was gone, I could focus more fully on the conversation, rather than worrying about the things I’d told him the day before. Or the things that I would have to tell him soon, especially concerning Takashi. 

“I’m sorry about that,” Sophie said, “Tommy can get a bit over excited.” 

“It’s no trouble,” I assured her. It had been a bit of a blessing in disguise. “I’m sure Natsu will be able to keep up with him.” 

She smiled at me and moved to a more comfortable position. Everything about her seemed calming-soothing...a feeling that seemed to swell when she mentioned her son. Could this be what all mothers felt? I dispelled the thought as quickly as it came. I wasn’t here to analyze how much some rando liked her kid. I was here to work. 

“If you wouldn't mind,” I said, “could you tell me when you think Tommy’s nightmares started?” 

The woman nodded, trying to distance herself from the situation, to talk as though the conversion were strictly business. The same thing that August and I did during difficult debriefs. 

“A couple months ago,” she said, “or that’s when he first told me about them at least.” 

“And do you have any idea what they could be about?” I asked. 

Sophie opened her mouth only to shut it again, “I’m not sure, but…” 

A guilt, a disconnect. 

“The more you share the better chance we have of helping him,” I reminded her, trying to figure out how much pressing was too much. 

A love for her son...then a feeling of not belonging. Of being undeserving. Of having no claim to him. 

“Pardon me if I’m overstepping my bounds,” I said, “but...is Tommy your biological son?” 

She looked up at me in disbelief. I’d hit the nail on the head. “How did you…” 

“My magic helps me guess things.” I said, though it had been a bit of a leap, things were starting to make sense. Sophie hesitated in front of me, she was on the brink of something big and heavy. “Any information you give me can help your son.” I said. I’d used this trick before, I realized, trying to coax information out of targets or people close to them. The words were familiar to me. But the fact that they were the truth this time wasn’t. 

Sophie let out a deep sigh, and I felt the floodgates rupture. “A few years ago,” she said, “my husband’s first wife was killed.” 

My mouth went dry, but Sophie continued, “she was wealthy, and had a handful of political enemies. Someone paid for a dark guild to come and take her life. It left the family in shambles.” 

I worked hard to control my breathing. I knew that the looming horror I felt ran deeper than Sophie’s words could drive it. 

“He married me a while after,” Sophie said, “thought I think he still loves his first wife, Tommy needed a mother, and we got together quite well.” 

In a vacuum I might have thought that her position was a sad one. But I saw that she was content. She really did love her son, regardless of the events that brought them together. 

“But, ever since he started these nightmares…” she swallowed, preparing for something that she didn’t want to think about, “he screams out for his mother, and I don’t think he’s talking about me.” 

I took a deep breath. It wasn’t hard to imagine what those dreams were about now, “was he in the house when she passed?” I asked, not at all sure I wanted to know the answer. 

“Just a few rooms over.” she said, “the screams woke him, and he ran to the hall just in time to see the man run past.” 

I rolled my hands into fists in my lap. There was no way to be sure that it had been Justice Valkyrie of course, but if it had been...with our no witnesses rule. The boy might have been only seconds away from death. 

“Thank you…” I said, “for telling me this,” thought I wished I hadn't heard it. “I’ll try and see if Tommy is okay talking about it with me.” 

“Thank you,” Sophie nodded, “let me know if there’s anything I can get for you that can help. I have to admit, I was just expecting Natsu over to work as some kind of comfort, but if you really can help him as you say,” she let out a sigh, “well I’m very grateful that you even managed to come at all.”

Even under normal circumstances, her praise would have made me uncomfortable, but now it fell on me like burning acid. I hadn’t been the one to kill Tommy’s mother. But I’d killed others like her. Had they been parents too? Most of the time I never even bothered to check. And now, this woman was standing there thanking me for being willing to help remedy some of the after effects of what people like me had done. 

It left a coppery taste in my mouth. 

Before I could come up with a response, there was a tap on the door, and the butler entered. 

“Dinner had been prepared.” he announced, before walking away again. 

Sophie stood, and I followed her lead, heading off to what I assumed was a dining room. “We had plenty of food bought in for the two of you for these next few days.” she said, “I’m sure you must be hungry after your travels.” 

At the moment I didn’t feel like I could eat anything, but I knew that Natsu would more than make up for it. “Thank you.” 

We entered a formal dining room to find that Natsu and Tommy were already waiting there, sitting across from one another, at the end of a long table.

They had been chatting when we entered, but both looked up when they heard us come in, smiling. 

“My husband is away on business,” Sophie said, “the butler will bring in the food shortly.” 

“Awsome!” Natsu beamed, “I’m starving!” 

Tommy giggled as Sophie and I took our seats, her next to her son and me by Natsu. He glanced at me for a moment, a question, I gave a little smile and nodded. I was fine. I would be fine. I could tell him all about the source of the nightmares later. 

In the meantime the butler appeared with a few other servants, setting the table with rich platters of meat and steaming vegetables. I could feel Natsu's apatite spike beside me as he started pulling it all onto his pate. Sophie moved to get food for Tummy before treating herself, and I sat in the middle of it all, trying to think of the best way to get away with eating as little as possible without looking impolite. 

“Hey mom,” Tommy piped up, “did you know that Natsu ate an Ethernano once?” 

I glared over at Natsu. I didn’t know a lot about dragon slayers, but I couldn't imagine that eating pure energy would be good for anyone. Even the thought of it seemed so incredibly foolish...but this was Natsu we were talking about. 

I waited for Sophie to scold us for giving a child such dangerous ideas, but I soon realized that she had no idea what an Ethernano even was. 

“Did he now?” she said, “that’s interesting.” 

Natsu had the gall to feel proud about this. 

“I’m sure he had a very good reason,” I said, speaking more to Natsu than to the strangers, “since doing that was very dangerous and should not be replicated.” 

Natsu's smugness fell, “Right! Of course,” he said quickly, “Those were special circumstances.” 

Sophie was now slightly alarmed, but recovered quickly, “Natsu is trained in a lot of stuff, I’m sure.,” she said, “it would be dangerous to try a lot of things he does.” 

“That’s right,” I nodded. Better to agree with Sophie than to let the truth slip. Eating Ethernano was a stupid idea no matter who you where. I could hardly believe that I had to be the one to remind Natsu not to give kids ways to get themselves killed. But from what I could tell of his mood, he only thought it was funny. 

Dinner went on like that for a while, with Tommy asking questions and Natsu giving long answers, telling stories of daring and bravery. I knew some of them, and others were unfamiliar, but I could imagine it all. Everything he said wreaked of that same fairy energy that I had grown used to at the guild hall. A kind of blissful chaos that I had yet to encounter anywhere else. 

For the most part Tommy ignored me, though I did sometimes feel his eyes flick to my direction. It was just as well. Natsu had far better stories than I, and he was better at telling them. On the few times that I was talked to, I was referred to only as Natsu's friend, or other things of that nature. But I didn’t mind. Natsu was here as a representative of Fairy Tail. a symbol of the whole wizarding world that this boy so loved. I wouldn't be a good ambassador for that. 

After an hour or so, Sophie took charge again, cutting off the conversation, “I’m sure that Natsu has plenty more fun stories to tell,” she said, “but it’s already past your bedtime.” 

“But mom-” 

“None of that,” she said, “Natsu will still be here in the morning. Now go get ready for bed, I’ll come see you in a minute.” 

“Actually,” I said, carefully, “if you don’t mind could we come tuck you in to?” 

The words and tone of my question were for Tommy, but I was looking at his mother, careful to detect any hesitation in case I had over steeped my bounds. 

“I think that’s a great idea,” she said, and I knew it was true. Natsu thought the same, already thinking of how things could go down. 

“Now go get ready for us,” Sophie said, “I need to talk to our new friends for a few minutes before we come.” 

“Okay,” Tommy nodded, all signs of fussiness gone. He paused in the doorway for a moment, looking back to Natsu and I. “see you soon.” 

“See you soon.” Natsu answered, before turning back to Tommy’s mother for another awkward talk.


	91. NINETY ONE

*Violet's POV*

“First off I should thank you for helping out with Tommy today,” Sophie said. 

“It was no problem.” Natsu said with something that resembled bashfulness. Now that Tommy was no longer in the room, his demeanor had changed, becoming at least a little more professional. As far as I could tell that was a good thing. But it wouldn't help me escape from what was about to happen. 

“I think it’s only fair that I tell you what I told Violet when you were away,” Sophie gave me a smile, and I smiled back, despite wishing that the conversation could have stayed just between us. 

I heard the shift of cloth as Natsu leaned forward next to me, waiting to hear the information that he’d been left out on. There was no way to stop him from finding out about it now. 

“You see…” Sophie took a deep breath, causing me to remember, a little bit guiltily, that this wasn’t an easy story for her to tell, “I believe that Tommy may be afraid because his birth mother was killed by assassins.” 

Natsu’s sharp intake of breath sounded like a gunshot in the otherwise quiet room. I felt his heart sink. They way that he had to force himself not to look at me. 

I kept my eyes fixed on the lacy table cloth in front of me, trying to look just interested enough to be polite as Sophie filled him in on the rest of the story. Natsu was half paying attention to her, and half paying attention to me, as though my reaction to her words was just as important to him as the story itself. 

Finally, Sophie finished talking, and I felt that she was about to lead us up to Tommy’s room. “I just thought you should know is all,” she said, glancing at me as if looking for a confirmation. 

I nodded on Natsu’s behalf, trying to tell myself that even though it had been awkward for me, it technically was better that he knew so that we could do our job better. So that we could better help a child that needed it. “Thank you for telling us.” I said. 

Natsu nodded stiffly beside me, his mind still on how I was taking things rather than the task at hand. I wished that he would stop paying attention to me and focus on the job. 

Lucky, his attention seemed to snap back to Sophie as she started to speak again. 

“I’ll lead you up to his room now,” she said, “I’ll check that he’s ready for bed then call you in?” 

Finally snapping out of his own head, Natsu was the one to answer, “sounds perfect,” but I felt in him another reason to think this was a good idea. An opportunity. Could it be that he was eager to be alone with me, even for a few moments? That couldn't be good. 

I tried to put it out of my mind as Sophie led the way up the stairs and to a door at the end of the hall. For all intents and purposes, I was Violet of Fairy Tail now. And however I ended up there didn’t matter. This Violet knew nothing about crime or killing. She knew nothing about Fiore’s dark underbelly at all. It was no different than any other undercover mission that I had been on. But for some reason, now it made me feel dirty, rather than superior. 

Sophie stopped at a door that had a cardboard sign on it with a crudely drawn Fairy Tail emblem, and the name “Tommy” with a backwards y. “I’ll only be a few minutes” she said, then ducked in the room, closing the door behind her. 

I took a deep breath as Natsu turned to me, waiting for something that I didn’t want to hear. When he didn’t speak I did a quick read. 

He didn’t know what to say. A question? Words of confront? Perhaps I didn’t want him to say anything. They were all viable ideas, and in truth I wasn’t sure which one I preferred. 

“I’m handling it.” I said, responding to his concern even though it had yet to find words. 

“Are you sure?” 

“Do I have a choice?” 

This had been the wrong thing to say. As soon as the words left his mouth, I felt his concern spike, and then calculating, looking for a way out. Surely he wasn’t going so far to consider leaving the job. “It’s not like it’s something that I haven’t faced before.” I said, thought that wasn’t strictly true. I had never met someone who was affected by a loss caused by me or people like me. Once I left them, it was simply another finished job. Another number in my kill count. I didn’t even remember most of their names. 

But someone did. Someone missed them…

No. this wasn't something that I could consider now. I had done a fine job pushing it out of my mind for the eternity of my life before Fairy Tail. I could do it for a few more days. 

We weren’t hurting them. We were freeing them from this hellish life. Delivering mercy. I was an angel of grace, not a killer. That’s what I had been taught. That’s what I had said to myself on the nights when phantom screams echoed off the dark barrack walls. To die was to be given freedom. To kill was to liberate. 

And yet...behind that door was a boy who had lost his mother. Who remembered her every night even though her killer never gave it a second thought. 

I didn’t have time to push the thoughts out of my head. But there also wasn’t enough time for them to coalesce into anything that resembled guilt. By the time the door opened again, I was left with nothing but a hallow in my stomach where I had shoved everything aside, leaving the mess of my past as something to work out another day. 

Now I have a job to do. And I was going to do it. 

“He’s ready.” Sophie said. “I’ll be down stairs if you need anything.” 

“Thank you” Natsu nodded. I noted that he had also forced himself to stop thinking about me, and let out a sigh of relief. I didn’t want to have to deal with pushing away both my thoughts as well as his. 

Sophie moved past us out of the room, revealing what I assumed was called a nursery. Plush animals and miniature trains littered the floor, showed up against the wall as if they had been put away in a hast. Across from the door was a tiny bed, illuminated with only a pale blue glow of a fairy emblem shaped nightlights on the other side of the room. 

Natsu entered first, approaching the bed and sitting at the foot of it. I lingered by the door for a moment, trying to get my mind on the task ahead of me. It would be easy enough to kneel down and fill the boy with enough tiredness that he would simply fall asleep without having room for fear. I could even skip the middleman and suck the fear out all together. 

But that was a temporary fix. I couldn't be here every night to help him. Which left us with only one choice. To get at the root of the problem. To get him to talk about what would help him. Or think about it at least. 

“Are you tired?” Natsu asked. I could tell that he was aware of me behind him, and was ready to lead Tommy into something that could give me a good read. I wouldn't have expected him to be aware enough to realize that's what I needed without any direction. 

“Only a little.” Tommy yawned. It was a lie, and not a good one, but Natsu didn’t call him on it. 

I felt Natsu make a decision, then he turned to look back at me, his mind stimulating forcefulness, then a question. He was getting better at the silent kind of communication that August and I had all but perfected. He wanted to know if it was a good idea to be blunt. I nodded, walking closer to the bed and kneeling next to it, putting myself between Natsu and the boy without forcing them to break eye contact. 

“This is my friend, Violet.” Natsu said. “Did you know what her magic is?” 

Tommy shook his head, curiosity muddled by exhaustion. It really had been a long time since he’d had a good night's sleep. 

“She can tell what you’re feeling,” Natsu said, “and help you change it.” 

I knew that he was changing his demeanor to better appeal to a child. But to hear my magic described in such simple terms with no hint of fear or disgust sent a little shiver up my back. 

“Is she going to help me with the nightmares?” Tommy asked, looking at me a little uncertainty. 

“That’s right,” I said, “Do you mind telling us what they’re about?” 

Tommy looked up to Natsu, nodded, then back to me, “I see the silver man.” 

The words were filled with terror. This was the first time that he had said them out loud. I took a deep breath, trying not to let the raw emotions distract me. 

“The silver man?” I prompted. 

“He stands in the hallway.” Tommy said, “outside of mom’s bedroom.” 

“What else does he do?” I asked. Taking deep breaths and hoping neither one of them would notice the way the hair on the back of my neck was razing. 

“He looks at me, takes a step forward and just stares.” 

“That sounds scary.” I say forcing myself not to look down the hallway, the way the shadows fall across the expensive looking carpet, where only a few years ago a real assassin stood, perhaps even- 

“Tommy…” I said, “what does the silver man look like?” 

Tommy narrowed his eyes, as though he wasn’t sure this was relevant, but with another look at Natsu he relaxed enough to speak. “Silver hair,” he said, “dark eyes, and a blue sash over his shoulder, and a mark to, on his arm.” I swallowed, and felt Natsu stiffen beside me. In a vacuum, they all could have been coincidences. But not after what Sophie had told us. And still the words rung in my head. No witnesses. 

“Mommy says he’s not real.” Tommy said, “That he’s just in my dreams. But he was once. He was there before. Wasn’t he?” 

There was no reason to lie. “Yes.” I said, surprising Natsu, “he was there once. It was real. But he's not here now. He won't come here ever again.” 

“Because Natsu’s here.” 

“I-what?” 

“Natsu beats bad guys up.” Tommy said. “The silver man won't come if he’s here. So I’m not scared.” 

It was true enough but…

“You’re right about that,” Natsu said, “but I wouldn't always be here.” the words were less confident than I would have expected. I wasn’t the only one that was having to block out Tommy’s feelings. This wasn’t easy for Natsu either. 

“But you’re here now.” 

“I’m here now.” 

Before I could think of anything else to say, Tommy shut his eyes, slowly but surely, I felt him start to become less clear, and he slipped into sleep. 

“He’s out,” I whispered, standing carefully. 

Natsu was still looking at the boy nestled under the covers “should we…” 

“He’s not afraid.” I said, “he’ll be fine.” 

Almost reluctantly, Natsu stood as well, creeping back to the door carefully and pulling it until only a crack was left open. 

I lead the way back down the stairs to where Sophie was waiting. I already had a few ideas for long term solutions. But I knew one thing for sure. Tommy’s sliver man. The thing he saw in his nightmares. The assassin that had killed his mother, could only be Takashi.


	92. NINETY TWO

*August's POV*

When Violet left on yet another job without me, I hadn’t minded nearly as much as I’d thought I would. I knew that she was going off with Natsu, to do something that she was good at, and when they returned, I would have to worry less about how they interacted. This was the first time that they’d been left alone for a long period of time since the incident in the woods. And it was my hope, as well as the master’s, that when they returned, the rift between them would begin to mend. But when Takashi arrived late that night, my mind changed again.

As expected, I’d spent the day inside the master’s office. But I had been at the bar with Gajeel when Takashi came to the guild hall. I wasn’t the first to see him. But I was the first to understand how bad it was that he had come. 

Voices of confusion, still warm with greetings echoed behind me. A stranger, a visitor. I turned from my place at the bar to see him. Silver hair and eyes that looked a little two cool for someone standing in a room as chaotic as the guild’s main hall. 

I stood from my stool before I could fall off it, forcing my knees not to buckle as his eyes swept over me. Already, explanations were running through my head. Most importantly, where Violet was, why I would let her go alone with Natsu after what happened last time. 

What I would say when they both returned home safe and sound. 

The other guild members were starting to notice that the visitor was staring right at me. I heard someone whisper “get the master,” and then the shuffle of footsteps behind me. Mira Jane mostly likely, going to find the person most equipped to handle this, well other than me anyway. 

I felt Gajeel’s eyes on me. A question. 

“Takashi!” an answer. “What are you doing here?” 

I left my tone polite, though just a bit of annoyance did creep into my words. What was it that had made him come? 

Takashi regarded me coldly. Even without knowing that we had turned traitor, he must have known that his arrival could be problematic. It had been one thing to explain to the fairies what he had been doing here the first time but again? And without sending warning? 

“Sorry to interrupt you here at your…” he looked around the room, an unconscious gesture, “guild.” as though the hall we were in didn’t meet his standards. 

“It’s no trouble.” I said, trying to keep my tone even. 

Lucky many of the fairies were turning away, pretending to be disinterested, though I wasn’t quite sure that they had actually stopped listening. 

“Walk with me?” I asked. 

It might not have been the best idea to go alone with him, but the other option was to talk inside the hall where the others could easily contradict me. 

“I’ll wait outside.” Takashi nodded. I could tell he meant it as a warning, but even if it gave me a couple seconds, it was better than nothing. 

“Got it.” 

As he walked away I turned back to the bar, pretending to be finishing my drink. As soon as Takashi had passed through the door Gajeel spoke. “Do you want me to follow you?” he asked. 

I glanced over the bar. The master had appeared on the other side, but said nothing, waiting for me to make the call. “No,” I said. “I’m not sure what he wants yet, or how long he’ll be staying.” 

I looked at the master. “If he was going to do anything tonight, he wouldn’t have just walked in here. I’ll be back when I’m done.” I glanced at the clock, “it might be late though, can you-” 

“Do what you need to.” the master said, “We’ll be here. If you’re not back by morning Gajeel can stop by. We can come up with a reason.” 

Gajeel nodded. 

“Got it.” I said, hoping that it wouldn't come to that. “See you then.” 

And I rushed to the door, heading outside to where Takashi was waiting. 

~~~

Though I had been the one that asked him to walk with me, I hadn’t expected Takashi to start moving away from the guild hall as soon as I made it out the door. It was as though he wanted to distance himself from the place. As though it was shameful to be seen outside it. I did my best to ignore it. 

I didn’t have time to deal with my emotions right now. I had to figure out why Takashi was here, how much he already knew, and how to build a story around it. I took a deep breath. Better to act like everything was fine. Make sure that there was no way he could sniff out what we’d done. Or...what he hadn’t done rather. 

“What brings you to Magnolia?” I asked. “You have another job?” I let a little bit of tension into my voice then. I had been frustrated when he’d come the first time, worried that the event of a killing might make the guild around us more on edge. It only made sense that I would be nervous about it now as well. 

“Not in Magnolia” he said vaguely. “I just came from one.” 

“Oh yeah?” I asked. So What was he doing here? “How’d it go?” 

“Pretty well. Wasn’t anything too hard, just some rich man in Oshibana.” 

“Oshibana?” that was the same direction as Omnibus. Takashi and Violet must have just missed each other. 

“I saw Vi on the way there.” 

I did my best not to shiver at the sound of the nickname on his lips. His tone was casual, but I could sense an implication. How to react? 

“She’s on a job with the Salamander.” I said carefully. 

“So I’ve heard.” Takashi said, “I’m glad for her. She seemed to have a good plan this time around.” 

I swallowed, trying to keep my face neutral. Had Violet told him that she was going to kill Natsu? That did make sense. It would have been the perfect opportunity, had she wanted to. And now, Takashi was less likely than ever to be on our trail, having literally caught her in the act of something preferable. 

But then...a darker thought still. Natsu and Violet had been fighting when they’d left. But despite that, Violet had been quite eager to take the job, and then she had Takashi to wind her up on the way there…

There was suddenly a bitter taste in my mouth. 

“Anyway,” Takashi said, thankfully not noticing my discomfort. “The master sent me here to help you out.” 

It took me longer than it should have to realize that he was talking about master of Justice Valkyrie, and not Makarov. A part of me wanted to point out that Takashi hadn’t exactly been much help last time he’d rolled into town with no warning. But I didn’t want to risk making him think too hard about why I didn’t want him there. 

“I know we had some disagreements last time,” Takashi said, “and I’m sorry about that. I know now that you were right.” 

I blinked. Did Takashi just...apologize to me? 

“You’re still the lead on this operation.” Takashi said, “but I’ll help you out, be an extra hand if you need alibis, that kind of thing.” 

“I...uh thanks..” 

There were so many things wrong with this. 

“Sorry again about showing up at the guild,” he said, “not a big fan of it, but I wanted them to see me before Violet comes back.” 

“Everything will be different then.” I said, realizing that things were about to get a lot more complicated. 

“She’s going to blame it on the masked man again,” Takashi said, “if you want, I could put it on and make an appearance when the two of you are in the guild, throw them off the trail.”

“That would be great,” I said, but my mind was miles away. The Master and I had been discussing strategies of getting Takashi out of the way, but neither one of us had anticipated that he would come to Magnolia. 

“Where are you staying?” I asked, hoping that he would blame the thought on the fact that we had just arrived at a crossroads, and not that I was trying to work out a way to get back to the guild hall. 

Takashi let out a little smile. “With you of course.” there was a glint in his eyes then. A challenge. 

I didn't react. “No reason to spend more of the guild’s money than we have to, I guess,” I said, not pointing out that most of the rent was being payed by Fairy Tail jobs now. 

“That’s the spirit!” Takashi said, turning down a street that would lead us to our apartment. He was quiet for a moment, making me wonder if he wanted me to speak. He had yet to ask for a debrief, I realized. But when he did talk, it wasn’t what I had been expecting. 

“I’m really excited for Vi to get back.” he said, his tone soft, more vulnerable than I would have thought was possible. “We’re going to make a great team.”


	93. NINETY THREE

*Violet's POV*

I stared down at my bed roll, waiting for Natsu to be the first to speak, despite not wanting to hear anything he had to say. The realization that the man who had killed Tommy's birth mother was Takashi hadn’t been a fun one. And it didn’t take a lot of reading to tell that Natsu had come to the same unpleasant conclusion that I had. 

The entire time that we had been reporting back to Sophie, he had stood beside me stiffly, trying his best to look natural and despite the thoughts that were chasing each other around his head. 

I figured it was likely that she had noticed that something was off about us, but because when I mentioned that we go over some options for long term solutions in the morning, she had agreed immediately. 

Natsu and I had said good night and we’d parted ways, her back to the drawing room, and us up to the place that the butler had shown us earlier. Neither of us had yet to say a word. 

On the other side of the room, Natsu finished setting up his own bed roll and turned his eyes to me. I knew that I had to talk to him. If not about Tommy, then about what Takashi had told me on the train. I took a deep breath. We haven't really talked beyond what was necessary since I’d yelled at him the day before. And that was the last thing that I wanted to bring up. 

I decided to start out strictly business, keeping the ball firmly in his court. 

“I have some ideas on how to help Tommy long term.” I said, “so you don’t have to worry about that.” 

Natsu looked up at me, so fast I didn’t have time to avert my gaze before our eyes met. “Is that what you think I’m worried about?” 

I knew it wasn’t, but I simply shrugged, “it was one of the things.” 

He was inclined to agree. 

“I’m glad that you came with me on this job.” he said, “I-when we were in there, I didn’t have a clue what to say.” 

I knew he was being truthful, but I still couldn't quite believe it. “I thought you were fine.” I said, “You’re good at this kind of thing. That’s why he asked for you.” 

“He asked for me because he’s a kid and I make big explosions.” 

At this I looked at him. He was smiling now, and I let out a giggle in spite of the pit in my stomach. “That’s not the only reason,” I said. 

Natsu shrugged. He had said it more to cheer me up, not because he thought it was true. still...I found it a bit exciting to realize that we were having an almost normal conversation. Even before that day in the woods, to talk to Natsu one on one like this...to be alone with him for so long, would have been a terrifying prospect. But now it seemed...just like a job. A part of my new life in Fairy Tail. 

“Besides,” I said, “I only got invited because the Master keeps trying to force us together.” 

Natsu started to protest, but the words died before they made it to his lips. “That obvious huh?” 

The causality in his tone scared me, but I didn’t back down. This was what I wanted wasn’t it? To be normal. To talk to him the way that I could talk to August? 

“The two of you aren’t exactly sly.” I said, “Especially with Laxus hunting me down like that.” 

It might have been a mistake to bring it up. But I wanted to know what Natsu knew about it. That and...Laxus’s words echoed in my head. 

“What you told me...you should tell Natsu.” 

As if on cue Natsu’s expression darkened. “He didn’t tell me what you talked about,” he said, “if you were worried about that-” 

“I didn’t think he did,” I said. My hand floated up to play at a lock of my hair. Was I really doing this? Was I really going to allow us to talk about what happened? 

“I think the master sent him.” I said. 

This didn’t surprise Natsu, so I continued, “he just walked to talk.” 

“About…” the word hung in the air, and though I didn’t know how he met for the sentence to finish, we both knew what he ment. About that day in the woods. 

“If you don’t wanna talk about it now we-” 

“I don’t wanna talk about it,” I assured him, “but…” I’d known that this was coming. That if I wanted to move forward with Fairy Tail, I would have to have this conversation. Was it time? Was this when it would happen? And then another thought. A deeper one. One that had been inside me for longer. This is a great way to make him trust you. This can help you learn where you went wrong. Make it better for next time. 

“I didn’t know it was you.” Natsu blurted. “Not till your sleeve tore and I saw your mark.” 

“I know.” I said. There was no going back now. 

“And I took your mask...I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t want it to be true.” 

I held my breath. Desperate to hear more-wishing he would shut up. I had opened this can of worms. I could power through it. But Natsu… he was still staring at me, but the look was different now. Distracted. His hands were clutched in his lap, testing around and around each other. I’d never seen him like this before. 

“Natsu,” I said, “you don’t have to-” 

“And then you asked if I was going to kill you…” 

Despair, clear but tainted. Not quite a pity, it was sharper, inside out. Was this...heartbreak? 

“I thought you were.” I said. The words came out quieter than I’d hoped. I kept my eyes on the floor, but heard Natsu scoot closer to me. “I thought...I thought that was how it was supposed to go. I was so confused when you didn’t.” 

“I was confused that you thought I should.” Natsu admitted. “At first anyway.” 

“At first?” 

He took in a long breath. And though I was an empath. Though everyone wore their emotions on their sleeve to me. I could feel an oncoming vulnerability that was nearly overwhelming. “I’ve been in a lot of fights.” he said, “it’s not the first time that..that someone expected…” 

He was recalling a memory, then another. More and more. More battles and victories than I could imagine. And then...something else...a loss. A moment of cowardice. “And I’ve lost some too.” he said, “it’s not fun to think you’re going to die, only to be saved by the bell.” 

I swallowed. This was not the conversation that I’d been expecting. I’d foreseen the same words that Laxus had implied. The same words that Natsu himself had given me that day. I’d been waiting for an assurance that I was never in danger. That I had always been safe in his hands. That to expect death was foolish. 

But here he was, agreeing that the danger had been real to me. Understanding that I’d been ready for the end. That I’d expected it. That I told myself I wanted it. And now that I had...now that I had been to that place in preparation...I could never not know what it felt like. 

“I know that getting back on your feet afterward isn’t easy either.” Natsu said. “But you did it.” 

“I-” 

“I’m not the best at swallowing my pride.” Natsu said, “So I can’t imagine it was easy to come back to Fairy Tail after a loss like that. To sit at Lucy’s and talk like nothing was wrong. I don’t have anything to compare something like that to, I didn’t know how to help you, but...I think you figured it out, right?” 

I knew that this was the time that I had to respond. That this question wasn’t rhetorical, and we would wait, and sit there all night until I answered. But I hadn’t been expecting a complement. No one, not even August had talked about how hard it had been to integrate back into Fairy Tail after everything that had happened. It had been a given. Something that I knew would be inevitable even if I had killed him. 

But Natsu had known all along that it was a struggle. He had stayed away when asked. Pushed to help me even when I didn’t want it. Even when I only gave him awkward situations to clean up. Even when I yelled at him for offering help. 

And to complement it all...to acknowledge that it hadn’t been easy…

The band aid that had been holding me together since that day had been ripped off, but somehow I was still in one piece. That feeling. The one that Laxus had eluded to, had been background noise in my head since Natsu spared me. But now it was front and center. Drug into the light by the same person that put it there. 

“You don’t have to say anything by the way. if-,” Natsu added quickly, “I know you don’t-” 

“No,” I said, “I...thank you.” the words couldn't tell him how much I meant it. My heart was racing as though I had run a mile, sending adrenaline down my veins that had nowhere to go. I took a deep breath and looked up, moving toward Natsu, closing the gap. “I’m not used to having people fighting for me. Even if it’s me they’re fighting.” I said. I was looking at him. I was facing the fear of it. “I’ve only ever known one way to do things, and after-after all this I-” I swallowed. “I want to move past it.” 

I offered my hand. An agreement. A promise. A view into sincerity. 

Natsu's came to me slowly, his hand touching mine. I felt no change. But I knew that he could feel it. How would he describe it? Anticipation? Relaxation? It seemed to be both. It was like the haze of fighting, but now sharp, and internal. A force that accommodated small movements just as well as large ones. 

Could this be bravery? 

We sat like that for a while, in companionable silence before Natsu spoke “We should both get some sleep,” he said, pulling away a little bashfully. “We still have this job to finish.” 

I watched him move across the room, my head still buzzing with his words. 

“Right.” I said, moving under the covers. “Goodnight.” 

“Good night, Violet.” 

It didn’t take long before Natsu’s breathing became more even beside me. 

I felt full of energy. 

Natsu and I had talked. We had talked about the woods. I had done what Laxus had asked. No longer did my life seem like it was in flux. My hands had finally been placed back on the reins. It was time to move on from that day. To move on from everything that had gone wrong. 

I swallowed hard as I thought about the thing we hadn’t talked about. The face that seemed to be hovering in my mind at all times. Takashi would be there when I returned to Magnolia. With him was the point of no return. I couldn't wait to tell him my choice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi yes. I'm back at it again because my update schedule is a dumpster fire that rivals that of Steven universe, BUT... yeah I don't have a good reason I just keep forgetting to post if over here. I might have said in the comments, but this is a repost from Quotev because I mean look it at it duh. I'm mostly just trying to learn how to use this site because it's time for some better expectations. but there is like one person reading this so if you want more just nag me lmao.


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